Naruko: The Inheritor of the Juubi
by cloudmatter
Summary: The Sage of Six Paths chose not to split the Juubi into nine bijuu. Instead he chose to pass the bijuu down to his third child, the progenitor of the Uzumaki.
1. Humble Beginnings

October 10th, the day their beloved Yondaime died. The day a child was possessed by a demon. At least that's what the majority of people in Konohagakure no Sato, the village hidden in the leaves, believe. It's true the child carries a demon within her, but she is merely the container stopping it from wreaking havoc upon the world.

The demon was unlike anything they've ever seen before, hell they'd never heard of anything like it. With ten long tails that seemed to destroy all in it's path. If not for the beast seemingly being weak from appearing they surely would have died. But the Yondaime Hokage appeared and sealed the beast away. Those who bore witness to the sealing saw as the baby girl with red hair and violet eyes undergo a change as her hair turned white and her eyes seemed to develop an odd sort of sharingan, though only the toad sage and third Hokage recognized the eyes for what they truly are, the eyes of samsara, the rinnegan. Not long after the transformation had faded and she was normal again, but the people knew, the demon had possessed her and now pretended that it was an infant.

The Sandaime had ordered those who bore witness to never speak of what happened on that night. His efforts were for not however as not even an hour after the sealing the citizens of the village were loudly clamoring for the girls death. He of course would allow no such thing, and kept a careful eye on her in order to prevent any would be assassins, and although he would never admit it, for it went against everything Minato had stood for and spat in the face of his skill, he too was afraid of the girl. The only semblance of knowledge on the creature dates to a legend involving the sage of six paths himself. The creature had never been seen since then. So why did it reemerge now? And could a young girl truly contain the beast? But he's the Hokage for a reason and he's not going to let his fear of the unknown make him harm an innocent child, he's not like his rival. He's just going to have to trust in the Yondaime's abilities, as the greatest non Uzumaki seal master to live in the past 100 years.

Their destruction is perhaps his greatest failing as Hokage, save perhaps the disaster that is his students. They were destroyed during the Second Great Ninja War under the combined forces of Iwa, Kumo, Suna, and several other smaller villages. They had petitioned weeks in advance for Konoha to make good on their treaty and to send aid, but he did nothing, Still with nowhere else to turn Uzushio sent the then child heiress to Konoha seeking asylum. It was the only thing they did for Uzu when it fell. And now sitting in a crib merely five feet away is the last of the Uzumaki, sleeping peacefully.

He can still hear the roar of discontent from the populace outside. Seeing nothing to be done about it he calls an emergency meeting of the greater council hopefully the heads of the clans will be able to at least get the ninja in the village on the young girls side.

Not ten minutes later does Hiruzen find himself sitting at the head of a long table. To his left sits his female teammate, Koharu, followed by his rival, Shimura Danzo. After Danzo sits the head of merchants guild, Satou Jin, and beyond him the chief justice of civilian law, Rokudo Matsushi, the civilian councilmen sits next Ayakawa Fuu, She's largely in charge of civil planning and immigration for civilians.

Next to Fuu is Mebuki Haruno, a civilian born ninja of the rank of tokubetsu jonin, She sits as the representative for ninja without clan affiliation. Finally sits Kazuto, he like so many others in the village has no surname, he is in charge of the ninja academies spread throughout the village. There are two currently empty seats, for civilian education and The head of the hospital on this side, the owners of which are likely heavily injured or dead, though the head of the hospital could have very well ignored the order to come given the sheer number of patients in need of treatment, he'll let it slide for now should that be the case.

To Hiruzen's right is his male teammate Homura, followed by the head of the Uchiha clan. Uchiha Fugaku. A stern man with an expression forever locked in his displeasure, and owner a the sharingan doujutsu, infamous for it's ability to copy ninjutsu and taijutsu, along with casting ocular genjutsu.

Next to him sits Shikaku Nara, the head of the Nara clan and jonin commander, perhaps the smartest man alive, though he has a son a few weeks old that might just surpass him one day. Beyond Shikaku is his close friends and teammates Choza Akimichi, the rotund head of the Akimichi clan, and Inoichi Yamanaka, the current head of T&I and the head of the Yamanaka clan, the only blondes known to Konoha now that Minato Namikaze is deceased. The three of them together form the second most legendary team in the history of Konoha, the Ino-Shika-Cho combo.

Beyond them is the Matriarch of the Inuzuka clan, Tsume Inuzuka. A feral looking woman known for her ability as a tracker and her prodigious strength with her ninken, Kuromaru. After her is the Shibi Aburame, the head of the Aburame clan known for their use of kikaichu insects that drain chakra, and their tendency to hid the majority of their body.

The last of the Clan heads is Hyuuga Hiashi, a master of the gentle fist, or jyuken, and his doujutsu the Byakugan, which grants it's users the ability to see chakra and see through objects in a nearly 360 degree view.

The last seat is held by the Anbu commander, known only as Ryu. He like all Anbu carries a tanto strapped to his back along with a mask, his depicting a dragon, thus his code name.

These are the representatives chosen from the two lesser councils (although both are actually larger, than the greater council) of Konoha, the civilian and shinobi councils respectively. Only meeting as they are when the greater council is called to order. Homura is the shinobi adviser and will head their meetings when the Hokage is otherwise unavailable. Likewise Koharu does the same with the civilian council, both then reporting to the Hokage upon the requests of the council and submitting paperwork for him to decide whether to pass or not. These councils elect nine members to represent them at large when the greater council is convened.

The members wait with bated breath to hear their Hokage speak, by now they're all aware of the events that transpired to night so they know exactly what the topic will be when he walks in holding the red headed infant. After a moment he speak, his voice tired. "Before we begin I'd like to take a moment to mourn our fallen comrades and loved ones." He says bowing his head to the those who gave their lives. It only takes a moment for the others sitting at the table to do the same, for while they might all have wildly different ideas about what is good for Konoha they all know that a lot of good people died tonight, including their beloved fourth Hokage.

The moment ends and they all raise their heads as Hiruzen begins speaking again. "As you might have noticed I've come in with a child." He raises a hand seeing Satou Jin start to speak. " Please hold your concerns for now. I'm sure you've all heard things about her and I want to know before we begin what exactly has been heard before we attempt to decide her fate." They seem calmed by this, and after a moment Mebuki speaks.

"Supposedly she's been possessed by the demon, and is waiting for a chance to destroy us once more." Hiruzen grimaced upon hearing that.

"I've heard she is the demon out right." This time it's Choza who speaks.

"My sources tell me she was spotted briefly possessing a rinnegan," Multiple gasps come from the ninja's upon hearing Danzo speak but he continues "And it was red with tomoe much like a sharingan." He says while looking straight at Fugaku. "In fact I think we all saw the beast had it as well." Multiple heads are now staring at Fugaku who is quietly simmering in rage but before he can speak the Hokage steps in.

"Now is not the time for accusations Danzo, it could have been a coincidence."

"Hiruzen, you know there is no such thing in our world."

"Perhaps, but now is not the time to be sewing more unrest into the village based off speculation. Now has anybody else heard anything."

"It's not a rumor I've heard but more what I can tell from seeing her, is this Kushina daughter?" Tsume asks, looking at the girl. She says asking the unspoken question. _Is this Minato's daughter as well?_ Something all the clan heads pick up on, having been friends of the couple to varying degrees.

Hiruzen ponders for a moment before answering. "Yes this is Uzumaki Naruko." The order went unspoken, her father is to remain a secret. The Yondaime had been careful to hide his involvement with Kushina a secret outside of his closest friends, the majority of civilians had thought him an eligible bachelor, much to Kushina's ire. They had planned on revealing all this to the village today, when their first child would be born. He hates to strip her complete heritage away at birth, but with no direct family to protect her he feels this to be necessary.

"Would it be possible for me to adopt the girl?" It's the head of the Hyuuga clan who speaks this time. Many share looks of surprise as he speaks not having expected him to care. But many forget his wife is Kushina's best friend and that he and Minato had been on the same genin team along with Tsume.

"No we should turn her into a weapon, even if she is the demon then she will be a demon loyal to Konoha," Danzo says, eager to have a weapon not seen anywhere in the elemental nations.

"No if she truly has a sharingan like eye then we Uchiha should have her, to teach her how to use it," Fugaku says with some greed sparking in his eye.

Jin speaks up and says, "I think we should kill it and be done with it!" No small amount of fear in his eyes. After he says that the council quickly erupts into chaos as the clans are trying to adopt her and earn her loyalty while the civilians are campaigning for her death. The only ones not trying to adopt her out of greed being Hiashi and Shikaku who's currently taking everything into consideration as he thinks on how best to proceed. His musing are interrupted as the aged Hokage speaks.

"Enough!" He says while lacing chakra into his voice, amplifying it. " I regret to say but I cannot allow any of you to adopt her, or turn her into a weapon, nor will I allow her to be killed." Turning to one of the Anbu he says "We will call for Tsunade, she's the girls godmother." He missed the subtle twitch of Danzo's finger, as he called the meeting for the day, all while a hidden root agent takes off after the Anbu agent. The agent would never be seen again, and Tsunade would remain ignorant. And in the chaos he missed his chance to truly make the civilians and shinobi sure the girl is no demon

After a year had gone by and the girl had nearly died by assassination attempt as many times as he had during his 59 years of life. He knew something had to change and change soon. He had Inoichi personally doing the screening of the girls wet nurses now, along with all her other caretakers. When she reached the age of three he'd put her in the Orphanage. Likewise everyone who is in contact with her has been screened so that she isn't in danger, but it's not perfect, but now he largely has trustworthy Anbu protecting her.

The citizens have only grown more upset with her existence however, and he can't convince them for the life of him that she isn't a demon. Of course he still wonders deep in his heart, but those thoughts usually disappear when he sees the happy little girl giggle at his hat or any number of things really. Perhaps she is a demon in disguise, but maybe she can learn to love humanity.

* * *

A/N: So this is my first fic, well kind of. I wrote like five thousand words of a RWBY fic a while back before deciding not to publish it and stopping. Anyways I, like probably every other author on this site, would love to hear feedback as to what you guys think. Does it seem interesting? Does it seem boring? Should I suck a dick and go kill myself? All valid responses and I encourage you to respond with your thoughts, even if they're just flames. I'll take any and all critique even if it's not super helpful. Btw without the author's note this chapter is 2151 words long, I know long A/N's bother people so I'll try to shorten them as time goes on. Updates may be irregular I don't really know yet. This doesn't have a beta yet so it's probably going to be a little rough. The next chapter should be longer, if only cause I'm likely going to cover most of the childhood and academy days so it will be less set up. Just because this is something I always wished authors would do I'm going to post the date I post each chapter so you can get a general idea of how frequently I update, since as of now I have no schedule. Once I get one I'll also give dates for when to expect the next update. Lastly while I know the whole council business is cliche I do plan to use it for something more than mindless bashing. That's all for now so hope you enjoyed, till next time.

-CM 10/24/2018


	2. Meeting the Heiress

Four years had passed since the Demon Attack, as the people of Konoha have come to call it. In that time things had regained a semblance of normalcy in the village. People had largely finished grieving and rebuilding. The village was beautiful again. But there is one thing marring that beauty, as far as the average citizen is concerned. And that thing goes by the name Uzumaki Naruko.

Of course as far as the little girl was concerned they we're all a bunch of jerks. She didn't quite understand why they thought she's the demon. Sure she was born on the day it appeared and was subsequently defeated by the Yondaime. But she fails to see how she could be a giant ten tailed monster, she doesn't have any tails, and she's pretty small (as much as she hates to acknowledge that).

She's pretty sure she's not supposed to know about people thinking her to be the demon. Whenever she asks an adult why people dislike her it's usually has people saying "Don't act like you don't know what you did!" or "They just don't understand, and are unfairly placing hate on you." That second one is usually said by the man in the funny hat. She doesn't see what's so hard about telling her, but oh well. The old man in the hat, the hokahge or whatever the matron of the orphanage calls him knows lots of stuff so he probably knows why she's not supposed to know. Though she also thinks she's not supposed to know that she shouldn't know. Ugh, just thinking about that is confusing her.

She was currently playing in the park, watching kids play. She wished she could do that, but the matron says she's not supposed to talk to others, they could hurt her. Naruko doesn't really see how they could hurt her more than the matron. But the matron will also hurt her if she disobeys so she sits on the swing imagining how much fun she'd be having if she were allowed to play with them. She's cut from her musings as she here's a soft sound coming from the forest near the playground. It's one of the many small forests spread though out the village. Listening for a moment longer she recognizes that sound, one she's made all to many times, when the matron punishes her. Someone is crying.

She's not supposed to talk to people but she doesn't want to listen to someone cry, so she decides to go see who's causing it. What she finds is a small blind girl being surrounded by three older boys, maybe ten years old. The blind girl seems to be about her own age. Naruko decides to observe for a moment, wondering why the blind girl is crying when she's surrounded by so many friends.

"You think you're so great just cause you have those freaky eyes?" Said the tallest of the boys with what Naruko can only describe as smiling meanly.

Another piped up and said "Yeah my older brother says he has a Hyuuga in his academy class and they all they do is talk down to those not from the clan."

"Y-You're wrong. W-we're not like that." The girl says poking her fingers together while choking on tears. Naruko decides she doesn't like seeing the girl cry.

"Hey! Leave her alone you jerks!" She's going to be punished later but she'd rather it be her crying than the other girl. As four pairs of eyes land on her and immediately the first boy speaks up.

"Why should we Tomato head?" The other boys snicker at his comment. Naruko however doesn't care that they're insulting her, everyone does that anyways.

"Because I'll kick your ass if you don't!" She shouts, not caring that they're probably in the academy and are all well over a foot taller than her.

The third boy who had been quiet until this point speaks up. "Hey I recognize her, my mom told me not to talk to the red haired demon girl, and she's the only girl with red hair like that I've ever seen." The first boy speaks up with a tone of dismissal. "Naw she couldn't be a demon, look at her, she's a shrimp!"

They all look at each other and laugh but in that moment Naruko rushes forward, fast for a four year old, and tackles the boy who called her a shrimp. She gets a few punches in and even rips some hair out before the other boys puller her off him and start wailing on her. She manages to hold out for a minute before she starts to cry from the pain. It's ten minutes before the boys get tired of beating her up and leave.

Timidly the blind girl approaches her and says "T-Thank you, Um. . ." She trails off not sure what to call her savior.

With a groan of pain she sits up and stares at the girl, noting for the first time how pretty her eyes are. Seeing she wants her name she says "I'm Naruko, Uzumaki Naruko." She says offering a bright smile. "Who are you?"

"H-Hyuuga Hinata." She says stuttering with a small blush. "A-Are you actually a demon?"

Naruko shakes her head "I don't think so, but a lot of adults think otherwise. I think they're dumb." She says while sticking out her tongue. Her silliness elicits a giggle from Hinata and if possible Naruko smiles even brighter. "You know I think your eyes are pretty, even if they're odd. So I gotta ask, are you blind?" Hinata blushes a bit and offers a soft smile, no one had ever complimented her eyes before. Hearing Naruko's question she shakes her head and opens her mouth to speak.

Before Hinata can respond a man appears, he's also blind, wait no, Hinata shook her head no so he's just got the same eyes. Maybe her brother or something? "Hinata-sama come we must leave."

"K-Ko-san can we stay a little longer? I want to keep talking with my new friend." She had slowly managed to gather her nerves as she speaks about Naruko, this is something she truly wants, unlike the training her father gives her in the Jyuken, so she's trying to be brave. Like Naruko would be.

For her part Naruko is surprised Hinata called her a friend, no one has ever wanted to be her friend before. Ko sweeps his eyes towards Naruko, before they briefly widen and he says "No Hinata-sama you shouldn't talk with that thing. Now come." He says while holding out his hand to the younger Hyuuga. Something doesn't sit right with Hinata at that and with more conviction then anyone had ever heard the young heiress use.

"No. Naruko's my friend, she helped me and I'm not going to leave her just because. . . because you're wrong about her." She says her eyes oddly like steel for a four year old. It's more than enough to shock the older Hyuuga. He looks towards the red headed girl. He's still not going to trust her, but if she can bring out this sort of attitude in the heiress then he'll allow it. Hopefully Hiashi will not be so upset as to activate his Caged Bird Seal.

With a sigh he says. "If that is what you wish Hinata-sama." Naruko was beaming and grabbed the heiress by the arm dragging her out towards the playground. So eager she failed to notice the softer smile on Hinata's face.

"C'mon Hinata-chan!" Naruko didn't hesitate to use the affectionate suffix. Hinata is her friend so of course she'd use chan.

With some hesitation Hinata responds. "H-Hai Naruko-chan!" The stutter eliciting a small frown from the red head, who quickly whirls on her.

"Hinata-chan! Be brave, I'll never judge you so don't be afraid around me." She says as her face morphs into a softer, gentler smile. Hinata nods a resolves herself to do better.

Ko seeing the interaction resists the urge to smile, even if she is a demon she is helping the heiress and for now that's all that matters.

The two girls arrive at the playground and immediately run into a problem. Naruko doesn't really know any games, so whenever they decide to play something new Hinata found she always has to explain it. Not that she minds, the look of excitement on the shorter girls face always brought a smile to her own.

It's half an hour later that Ko steps out of the treeline, deactivating his doujutsu as he does, no longer needing it to keep the heiress in sight with it. Just as he was prepared to call out to Hinata-sama an older woman approaches the two and roughly grabs the red head.

"Naruko I told you not to talk to others and I find you not just talking to this girl but playing with her?!" Naruko looks up in surprise as she is scolded by the matron of the orphanage. "Now come you stupid girl." She says while roughly tugging her up to her feet and away from the Hyuuga. That poor girl was probably to disturbed by the demon to say anything.

"Sorry. Hinata-chan guess I've got to go now." Naruko says with a look of regret on her face.

"I just told you not to talk to others and now you're doing so in front of me?" The matron asks rhetorically. It's upon seeing this that despite his own misgivings Ko steps in.

"Ma'am she's become a friend to Hinata-sama the Hyuuga heiress, surely you would not mean to separate them?" He says while glaring at her with his Byakugan activated. It's more than enough to sufficiently cow the older woman.

"Fine she can be friends with the heiress but that does not change it's time for her to go home." She says not eager to offend the Hyuuga clan.

"I see no issue with that, come Hinata-sama it's time we head home as well." He says while holding out a hand for her to take. She does so while saying.

"Bye Naruko-chan, I'll see you again." Naruko nods and says.

"See ya later Hinata-chan" She says while being pulled away. It's only when she arrives back at the orphanage and put in her room is she spoken to again, by a now much angrier matron. With a powerful slap to her cheek the matron says.

"That is for disobeying me, and this," She slaps Naruko harder, enough to bring tears to her eyes "is for embarrassing me in front of the Hyuuga." She continues to inflict these physical punishments on the four year old, by the time she's finished the young girl is forced to spit out the blood that's pooled in her mouth. "You will clean up the mess you made and then as further punishment won't be given meals for the next two days, more if I hear your crying or complaining." She says while gesturing to Naruko's blood on the ground.

All Naruko can do is wonder if Hinata-chan will be forced to suffer the same punishment for talking to her. She hopes not. She also sort of doubts it, since she's pretty sure most people don't think Hinata-chan is a demon. Once the matron leaves the room and locks her in, she can't help but show a soft smile, she made a friend today and that's enough to keep her going through this punishment.

* * *

It was a short five months later that Naruko found she was no longer welcome in the orphanage. All she had done was sneak out to visit Hinata at the playground but when she came back she found she couldn't get back in and when she went to the front the matron looked down at her and said they'd never met before. Naruko thought the matron must have lost her marbles and told her as much. All that accomplished was the door being slammed in her face. Well who was she to look a gift house in the mouth? She never understood that saying, why do people say gift houses have mouths? Is it the entrance? Why would she not want to look inside her new house? She failed to realize it's horse and not house.

She wonders what she'll do about a place to stay, it's not going to be another two months until her birthday when the man with the funny hat will visit again. She'd assume he'll look for her when he finds she's gone. For now she'll just look around for food and shelter.

It would be hours of wandering and failing to find a suitable place she looks further out side of the village proper, into more of the training grounds. She stumbles upon a fenced off forest, it has a sign. "Training ground four four? What a weird name. I wonder if there's any food inside." She speaks as she slowly climbs the fence. It's odd though, as she walks through she notices the animals nearby all retreating from her. They always seem to do so, even the weird kitty with a bow, or the dog peoples dogs. She never could understand why animals seem to be more afraid of her than the people.

She tried to chase after one but they were to fast for her to catch. She decides that she won't be able to get any food from here, but maybe she can use it as shelter since the animals don't seem to want to bother her. Such a shame to, they're all so cute. Especially the giant striped kitties, they look especially fluffy. Making her way back into the village she tries to use the small amount pocket change to buy some food only to be rebuffed at every turn. She goes to bed hungry that night. The next morning she repeats the same process only to be met with failure once more. She goes to bed hungry again. Maybe if she demands things like those people with black eyes and hair. She tried walking up to a man selling bread and bluntly said "Hey give me your bread." When he yelled at her she decided that probably only works for the black eyed people. She went to bed hungry once more. The next morning all she can do is think about how hungry she is. She barely even had the energy to search for food. She went to bed hungry, feeling for the first time the bitter sting of her own tears from hunger pains. She made it back into the village the next day, following the scent of something delicious, only to pass out just as she reached it.

She awoke in a bed, that hadn't happened in since the old man last visited her, does that mean he came early? No this isn't the orphanage. Where is she? That delicious smell tickles her nose once more. She weakly begins to sit up only for an older girl she hadn't noticed before now helping her to sit up.

"Easy, you're still weak." She couldn't bring herself to ask when this little girl ate last. The answer might break her own heart. The red headed girls stomach growled loudly bring a blush to the young girls face. "Just wait a moment I'll bring food real quick." She's not even gone for a minute before returning with a warm bowl of, noodles? She'd never seen food like this before. She's mostly used to seeing stale bread or rotten fruit. That's what the matron always gave her. Still Naruko can't help as she digs her hand into the bowl only to wince as she gets burned. The older girl lets out a gasp and hands the other girl chopsticks.

Naruko looks up at her confused why was she given sticks. She voices her concerns. "Why did you give me sticks?" The older girl realized at this moment that the red head had no idea how to use eating utensils.

"They're for eating, so you don't get burned. I'll teach you later for now I'll just feed you myself." She says as she takes hold of the chopsticks and lifts up several of the noodles. Naruko nods and opens her mouth, only to practically melt as she eats the most delicious thing she's ever tasted. "Are you okay? You're crying, do you not like it?" The older girl asks with concern.

"I-I'm okay, this is just the best thing I've ever had, what is it?!" She says only now noticing the tears that had been stinging her eyes. She quickly tries to rub them away, previous experience having taught her people are often meaner when she cries. "A-Anyways, what's your name, nee-chan?"

"I'm Ichiraku Ayame, this is my families miso ramen. Who are you little lady?" She asks as she gives the red head another serving. The girl answers while slurping up the delicious noodles.

"Uzumaki Naruko." She says more focused on eagerly eating. They fall into a comfortable silence interrupted only by Naruko's eating. After she finishes off the ramen she takes it into the another room. When she returns she brings an older man with her.

"This is my father Ichiraku Teuchi, and the man who made your ramen." Naruko practically has stars in her eyes when she hears that and gratefully says.

"Thank you Oji-san." He can't help but see her mother in her, she looks just like her, only tiny. If he had known she was on the streets he would have helped her much earlier.

"No worries, you're welcome any time." He says with a smile on his face, knowing he'd do anything to help his friends child. Once more the little girl started crying, it's the first time since she met Hinata-chan that anyone has shown her kindness. Sure the old man with the weird hat was kind of nice to her, but he never truly helped her, just tried to see if she's okay, which is still more than most people.

* * *

She had started visiting the Ichiraku family all the time, she had most her meals at their stand near their house. She had also figured out that while it's gross, checking trash cans outside of restaurants typically nets her a meal, but she always has to hold back gagging while eating that stuff.

It had been a month since they rescued her, and she realizes now, a month since she last saw Hinata-chan. Does Hinata-chan miss her, because she misses the girl with white eyes. Maybe she'll go to the park today, she did just get fed by the Ichiraku so she doesn't need to scrounge up food for a little while. When she arrived at their usual playground she was almost immediately knocked to the ground as something lands on top of her. It's enough to knock the wind out of her and make her groan.

"Why did you stop coming for a month, without even telling me?" Ah she recognizes that voice. It's Hinata-chan! She offers and apologetic grin.

"Sorry Hinata-chan I was busy looking for food." Hinata looks up at her in surprise before bringing her hands down to Naruko's sides. She's much thinner than the last time they saw each other.

"Why isn't the orphanage feeding you?" She asks worried. Not far off Ko is wondering the same thing, with his Byakugan activated he's able to easily see this girl hasn't had a truly filling meal in far to long.

"Oh they started pretending that they don't know me and then kicked me out." Naruko says like as though she's talking about the weather. "Now come on we haven't played in forever. What do you want to play first?" The little red head asks excitedly.

Hinata for her part can almost feel her heart break at hearing how this amazing girl has been out on the streets for a month. But Naruko isn't crying over it and neither will she. The two girl start playing. Well they argue first on what to play, Naruko clamoring for playing ninja, while Hinata claiming the two should play house. Hinata ultimately wins that argument, but only while conceding to play ninja next time.

Ko for his part is thinking on what to do about this. Does the Hokage know the girl is out on the streets? Perhaps he could bring her to the Hyuuga estate. A few months ago he would have been afraid Hiashi-sama would flay him for even thinking it. But when he told the man of Hinata's new friend he had actually seemed pleased. Yes he'll invite her to the estate and then Hiashi-sama can bring up her circumstances to the Hokage, either immediately or during the next shinobi council meeting. It's an hour later that Ko says "Hinata-sama, it's time we head back home."

"Can we not stay a little longer Ko-san?"

"No your father wants you home early today, apparently for etiquette training." It'd true, there would be a foreign dignitary from Kumo coming in six weeks and the girl needs to be taught how to act around them.

"Oh, well bye then Naruko-chan."

Ko lets out a sigh, before saying "Well Naruko-san would you like to come with us, Hinata-sama's father would love to meet you."

Hinata gasps at that and looks hopefully at Naruko. The red head excitedly says. "I'd love to, come on Hinata let's go. Ooh what does your house look like? Does everyone there have eyes like you two?" The girl continues to babble excited while being escorted to the estate.

Upon arriving the guards look skeptical at allowing the demon girl in, but if Ko wants to get his seal activated for bring her in then that's on him. Ko immediately brings the two girls to Hiashi. Knocking on the door to his office Ko waits to be allowed entry. It comes a few moments later when a stern voice says. "Enter."

Inside sits Hiashi at a desk currently doing paperwork. A few minutes pass by in silence before Naruko breaks it. "Hey you're Hinata-chan's dad right?" Finally that's enough to make the man look up and what he sees nearly gives him a heart attack. The girl looks so much like her mother one might think she was a small clone. Of course he would never show such a reaction externally and he calmly replies.

"Yes Hyuuga Hiashi. I take it you're her friend, Naruko, she told me about?" He knew who he was but it's not like he can just tell her he's known her for longer than she can remember.

"Yes Otou-sama this is Naruko-chan." Hinata says with a look of determination on her face. Her father has never been against her friendship, but she still won't let anyone be rude to the older girl.

Hiashi gives his daughter an appraising eye, before offering her a rare smile. These girls resemble their mothers to such an amazing degree. Hitomi, his wife, will probably squeal when she sees the redhead. He gives a nod and says. "Well alright then Naruko-san, know that you're welcome here any time." Of course the clan elders will probably give him hell for that, but he's the head of the clan for a reason, and he's not going to turn away his friends child.

"Excuse me Hiashi-sama, but I think you should know the girl has apparently been on the streets for the past month." A loud cracking echos through the room as Hiashi breaks his pen in his grip. His face remains unchanged.

"Thank you for making me aware of this Ko, I'll speak to Hokage-sama about why an orphan is stuck on the streets when we have a perfectly good orphanage." Naruko briefly wonders how he knew she's an orphan before figuring that maybe Hinata told him. "Hinata why don't you go introduce her to your mother and offer to let her have a bath."

"Hai Otou-sama."

* * *

It's not even an hour later that Hiashi is staring at the Hokage from across his desk. "She's been living on the streets Hokage-sama." The aged Hokage nods and says.

"Yes I'm aware, I've had Anbu watching her for years, and that has not changed." Hiashi had known there were Anbu but had figured the aged kage must have called them off, how could he have known she was on the streets and not done anything. Raising a hand to silence the man before he can speak the older man continues. "I've chosen to treat it as a test, to see if she truly is a demon, because surely a demon would be able to fend for itself on the streets."

"Then you should know by now she is no demon, because the girl has been starving."

"Yes I've come to that conclusion as well. But I had to be sure before I continue to use village resources protecting her." Hiashi was almost feeling sick. It's easy to forget but this man is known as both 'the Professor', and more importantly, and 'the God of Shinobi.' Many tend to think that just means he's powerful, but it's more than that. He is a master in every shinobi art and is what all shinobi should strive to emulate. Among those skills includes ruthlessness of the highest order.

"So will you be getting her a place to stay then?" If the older man won't then he will.

"Yes I've prepared an apartment for her. The Anbu currently watching her is under orders to escort her their once she's done playing with your daughter."

"Then by your leave Hokage-sama." Hiashi says with a bow. The old Hokage nods and dismisses him.

* * *

When Hiashi returned he found his pregnant wife cuddling the life out of the redhead. Said redhead is currently trying to wriggle her way out of his wife's grasp. His wife looks up and says. "Hiashi she looks just like her, it's adorable!" He turns an eye towards his daughter and is amused to find her staring at the other two with a look of jealousy, though he doubts she even knows what she's feeling.

"Do you wish your Kaa-chan was doing that with you?" To his surprise his daughter shakes her head and says.

"No Otou-sama, I wish I could do that with Naruko, but she's stronger than me and always breaks free." That wasn't the answer he had been expecting but if possible he finds himself even more amused with that answer. Her mother had always tried to do the same with Kushina when they were younger. They really are like their mothers.

"Hinata I've decided to postpone your lessons until Naruko-san leaves. Be sure to enjoy your time with her."

"Freedom!" Cries Naruko triumphantly as she manages to finally break free of Hitomi's grasp. Only for Hinata to immediately leap at the opportunity and grab Naruko, while pouting at her mother.

"Kaa-chan she's mine. You already have Otou-sama." Well that was certainly enough to make the only man go slack jawed. Hitomi on the other hand bursts out laughing. Naruko was lost, is it funny for them to be friends? Why would she not be able to be friends with Hinata's mom either?

* * *

A few weeks had passed since then and Naruko had to admit, they've been amazing. She got a new place to stay thanks to the purple haired woman in the kitty mask. It's so much bigger than her room at the orphanage. There's so much space to run around and she even had Hinata-chan sleep over a few times, with Ko's supervision. She even has plans tonight for Hinata-chan to sleep over after some dude with clouds or something comes to the village. She's supposed to be over at 8 pm

Of course that's not all, she turned five two weeks ago and for the first time she got presents. Her favorite is the brush Hinata-chan gave her. She was also given a cool frog wallet by some white haired circus performer, at least that what she thought his dance was for. She likes it but for some reason she can't help but think she'd prefer a rabbit wallet, or maybe a tree? What would a tree wallet even look like?. Speaking of trees she, she planted some flowers (she knows they're not trees but they are plants and that's close enough for her) on her balcony. The balcony is so cool she can see the entire village from there. She got a few more gifts, mostly from people she doesn't know. She's currently staring at one, it's hanging on her wall, ticking quietly, this one was from one of the animal people, specifically one with spiky white hair, or is it silver? The ticking thing, a clock she thinks it's called, says the time is 7:55 pm, she can feel her excitement bubbling. Hinata-chan will be here soon.

Minutes pass and she excitedly turns towards the door Hinata-chan is always on right on time so she should be here any second now. Okay so maybe she's running late, she should be here any minute now. She looks towards the clock, finally taking her eyes off the door, 8:30. When did that happen. Does Hinata-chan not want to see her? 9 pm, she's still not here. Naruko can feel the tears starting to prickle her eyes. She's crying now, it's 10pm and Hinata-chan still isn't here. Even that one time she was sick Ko had arrived early to tell her.

She lays in bed, angry and confused and more than anything sad. Closing her eyes she just wants this day to be over.

 _Ruko-ch. . . Hel. . . Tou. . . Kaa. . . anyone plea. . ._

Naruko shoots up out of bed, her heart beating wildly. Was that a nightmare? She looks at the clock, it's only 10:30. It was odd it sounded like Hinata-chan was speaking to her, but Hinata-chan never showed up. Maybe she's waiting outside for her? Naruko quickly gets up and checks. No one. Maybe she is waiting at the playground they usually play at, Naruko had made that mistake before so maybe Hinata-chan did too? No no one is there. What about the forest near it? Nothing.

For some reason her heart is still beating like crazy, she can't get the idea of Hinata-chan being in danger out of her head. A voice echoes through her head. It's odd, like she can understand what it's saying yet at the same time she can't. Like it's to far off at the moment for her to hear, but she can tell it's talking. It wants her to sit as still as she can. She's not very good at that but she'll try it.

When she opens her eyes next things seem odd, like she is in the water but can move normally. Like there is some thing, she can't describe it, flowing all around her. It's in this flow she notices something. While most things near her feel of fire, off in the distance, something feels of lightning. And it's with something else, no someone else, It feels kind of like. Hinata-chan!

She rushes towards those two feelings as fast as she can, the world seems to go by faster than she's ever noticed before. She still pretty sure she's visible unlike those super fast animal people but she knows she's faster. She's unsure of how long it takes but she approaches the two feelings. A huge man, maybe he's part giant, is holding a sack. Did the sack move? The man turns, and says something but she can't seem to recognize it she's so focused on the bag. It moved again and in that moment she felt it. Hinata-chan is in that bag!

"Hey you jerk, let Hinata-chan out of that bag!" She says while pointing a finger at the man.

He snorts and says "Yeah whatever you little red eyed freak." She gives him a confused look.

"Red eyes? You should get your eyes checked, my eyes are purple. Or maybe you just never learned colors, were you to dumb?" The taunt is fairly childish, and the man rolls his eyes. Seeing it didn't work she tries something different. "Hiashi-sama Hinata-chan's in the bag!" She would normally never call him sama, but she figures it'll sell it better. It did. The man whirls behind him afraid to be attacked from behind by the head of the Hyuuga clan. There was no one there. His shoulder lightens suddenly and he immediately knows he's been had.

The Uzumaki lets Hinata out of the bag and removes her gag. The first thing Hinata says is. "Naruko-chan did you always have red eyes?" The heiress was confused, she could have sworn Naruko-chan had purple eyes. But the entirety of both eyes are red, with a darker red in the pupils, even the skin around it has turned red. And her hair seems to be standing up oddly, even though it's normally very smooth. Her eyes widen however and she screams "Naruko-chan look out." And then something even stranger happened, as Naruko-chan turned her eyes and hair seemed to return to normal. She gets kicked in the head and is sent flying away from Hinata.

"That was a neat trick kid but don't think you're going to get me again. Hell just for that I'll kill you. But first, I'll make you regret saving the girl, how would you like to see your friend lose her legs?"

He wasn't really going to cut off the girls legs, not when he can't get her healed, they do need her to breed the Byakugan in the cloud village, and having her bleed out is not conducive to that. Regardless he pulls out a kunai and holds it up to the heiress.

"No don't hurt her!" Naruko cries out, as she shakily stands, spitting out the blood that is building in her mouth.

He may not intend to cut off her legs, but simply stabbing them will be enough to both torment the other girl, and make sure she can't run. "To late for that." The kunai descends. He knew no more.

* * *

"No don't hurt her!" Hiashi had arrived just on time to hear that cry, but not even a second later the words of an adult male said.

"Too late for that." He burst into the clearing right at that moment.

* * *

All over the village one thing was felt at once. Dread. They know this feeling, it's the same as it was five years ago. It seems the demon really was just biding it's time.

It took Anbu ten seconds to arrive at the location of the foul chakra. It took the Hokage eleven. No one found what they we're expecting. They had been prepared to see a ten tail monster growing out of a girls stomach, or a girl to be turning into said monster. What they found was a very dead cloud ambassador, a frozen Hyuuga Hiashi, and a white haired girl with ringed sharingan like eyes standing protectively in front of the Hyuuga heiress. The white haired girl is covered in blood. After only a moment the chakra, and transformation fades leaving only a blood soaked Uzumaki Naruko, a Hyuuga heiress clutching the other girl for dear life. And a now rushing Hiashi eager to see his daughter safe, along with her savior.

The girls were both unharmed, in fact the blood on the Uzumaki seems to be entirely from the cloud nin. The Hokage speaks to everyone present, his face grim, knowing the whole village felt this. "No one here shall speak of what happened here ever again, as far as we're concerned Hiashi found the cloud nin kidnapping his daughter and another child, and he killed him for it."

As one the Anbu present salute the Hokage and fade into the shadows. The Hokage turns to Hiashi and says "Now tell me what you saw."

"Sir I arrived just as he was about to stab my daughter, then Naruko used what I can only assume is its chakra. She killed him so fast I could have blinked and it was over. One moment he's alive attempting to stab my daughter and the next he's on the ground with Naruko ripping her hands out of his chest. I tried to approach and make sure they were alright but she growled at me and stood in front of Hinata, she remained that way until she passed out." Hiashi says, with mixed feelings. On the one hand she saved his daughter and was aware enough to continue protecting her. But on the other she could only barely recognize friend from foe, and clearly the demon can exert some influence on her. Still she had saved his daughter and for that she would have the Hyuuga clan on her side.

The two men neglected to think about the fact that Hinata was still very conscious and could hear their conversation, even if she didn't understand all of it. But she knew one thing, for certain, Naruko had come to rescue her. She swore at that moment, to in return always be there to protect the boisterous red head.

* * *

Hinata would soon come to learn that she had a lot of protecting to do. The Hyuuga affair as it's come to be known, caused a change in the citizens of Konoha. Before they merely hated and ignored the girl, hoping she would go away. Of course they were more scornful when she talked to them, but now. Now they were out for blood. They had all felt it that night, that horrid chakra returning. Seeing the demon still residing in human form the realized that perhaps she wasn't a demon before. But now surely the demon has taken possession of her.

Hinata often found herself coming home with bruises from pushing Naruko out of the way of rocks being thrown at her, and taking the hit instead. And much to her fathers dismay has recently earned a reputation for insulting villagers who took to insulting the red head. He sees no problem with protecting the red head. Hell he even has standing orders that no matter the time of day, or what is going on the girl is allowed to enter the compound, no questions asked.

The Hyuuga clan had at first been against the sudden support of the girl, beyond just letting he be friends with his daughter. But he told the elders the truth. If nothing else they saw a chance to earn a loyal and powerful body guard for the heiress, so they allowed it. It didn't take long for the rest of the clan to follow.

It's because of this that much to Hiashi's delight, Hinata took a sudden interest in training, and he quickly found out, that when his daughter is not hesitating she's actually more talented in the gentle fist then he ever was.

That is perhaps the only truly good news for the clan as a result of that night however. He had lost his brother as a result of the political fallout with Kumo. Not only that the greater council meetings have been rather annoying as he's constantly hounded by the civilians for helping the demon girl. While the Shinobi claim he's trying to gather power. Is it so hard to believe he would help his friends child?

The Sandaime had been feeling much the same as he rubs his head as a migraine seems to be growing as he listens to the councilors squabble among themselves. The two Civilian seats have since been filled, though really it's only accurate to call one of them civilian seats. Yamada Haruto is the new head of the civilian education system. He's a rather stupid man despite the position he fills, but he's got a way with words and the civilians elected him for it so they can deal with the fallout of being so easily swayed.

The other seat, for the head of the hospital, which is only technically civilian because it's not reserved purely for shinobi, is the only female student of the late Yondaime, and the youngest member of the council. Noihara Rin currently 19 years old and the third greatest medic in the history of the village. Her hair has grown in the past few years, reaching down to her waist. She still has the purple markings on her face similar to those of an Inuzuka. She had been working as the third in charge at the time of the attack, but her two superiors died when a emergency ward set up outside the hospital was hit by an attack.

She took to the responsibility like fish to water and saved thousands of lives, both through her own skills, and her orders to the other medics.

"Enough. We're not here to discuss Naruko, this is just our monthly meeting to discuss the current needs of both councils and the current state of affairs in the village." Hiruzen, done appraising Rin, speaks.

Haruto speaks. "But that's just it Hokage-sama, the civilians are feeling unsafe with that thing around, and we feel for the safety of our people it would be best to get rid of her."

"I understand your point and I assure you the girl will not be a harm to the civilians." Why can they never just leave this be, there is actual work to be done.

"But sir, we all felt the beasts power, and now look she is even making Hiashi-dono's daughter act depraved." Hiashi cuts in at this point.

"I fail to see how my daughter defending her friend is in any way depraved." He says with disgust in his voice. His eyes locked on the other man.

The Hokage speaks again. "I said we will not be discussing Naruko today, so now aside from any Naruko related matters what is there to report?"

Shikaku speaks up at this point. "Troublesome." The collective council stares at him waiting to see if he'll say anything else. Finally he does "We've found Orochimaru's missing apprentice." Following this Inoichi speaks up.

"I've already both interrogated her and done a mind sweep, she can't remember anything other than being told they were leaving on a training trip, and an intense pain in her shoulder. But other wise she is still as loyal to Konoha as you or me Hokage-sama."

He nods "That is excellent news, We'll give her a probationary period of three months, if nothing happens then she'll be given her rank of chunin back, for now she will be treated as a genin."

The rest of the meeting went by rather uneventfully as they discussed mostly budgeting and the allocations of missions, as well as overall mission intake for the past month. Calling an end to the meeting Hiruzen says "Meeting adjourned, see you all in a month."

* * *

A/N I've decided to end this chapter here, if only because it was getting long and I didn't want to have an extremely drastic jump between the length of chapter 1 and chapter 2. The next chapter will finish off the childhood days and then we'll be getting into canon. Till next time

CM 10/25/2018

Edit 10/26/2018 – it was brought to my attention that there was a clash between trying to show Naruko as mature for her age and trying to still give her a childish understanding of things. I've changed a few instances of dialogue so I hope that flows better. If you notice similar problems in the future don't hesitate to tell me.


	3. Academy Days

The rain was pouring outside. The rain always poured here. This country had always been known for it's rain but ever since The Second Shinobi War it seemed that the rain never ceased. Of course now it's powered by his chakra so it truly never stops. But he liked to think it's because even the world weeps for Amegakure, and the pain it's suffered.

The man turns to the four others gathered in the room with him, each wearing a black cloak with red clouds. The one farthest to the left is a blue haired woman. She also happens to be his oldest living friend. To the right of her stands a man with green eyes and black sclera, he wears a mask covering the lower half of his face. The man furthest to the right is an odd half black half white plant man. The last man to be standing in the middle wears an orange mask shaped in a swirl, showing only a single red eye. The man with green eyes speaks.

"Leader-sama why are we not just collecting the container now?" It was a valid question, he thought they were after it's power so why not just take it while the container is weak.

"Our goal is to have a jinchuriki under our control. We don't need to extract the beast for that. According to Zetsu's report the ignorant humans have already started to let the girl know pain. We will wait and when the time comes save the girl from the pain. And in the process insure her loyalty to us. If she resists then we can take it by force." He intends to let the world know pain, but he can avoid killing the child. So he will.

Konan knows what he won't admit, even to himself. Nagato has a soft spot for children, he always has, likely as a result of their own pasts as orphans of war. She'd be lying if she said she didn't feel the same way. If bringing peace to the world means they also get to help a child she won't complain.

* * *

People are strange. Or maybe she's the strange one. And as much as she likes her best friend, Hinata-chan is definitely strange. Naruko thinks people are weird and stupid for treating her like a monster, and trying to hurt her when she walks the streets. But everyone does it so maybe she's strange for not hurting herself, since normal people seem to hurt her. She figured she could settle for somewhere in the middle and just ignore them. But Hinata-chan decided it would be more fun, at least Naruko thinks that's the case, to hurt the villagers back for her. But that's weird since it's apparently normal for people to hurt her for their own sake, rather than hurting others for her sake. Hinata-chan typically just disables them, with those finger strikes, but they typically cry out when that happens so it must hurt.

Well Naruko doesn't have a family to teach her how to hurt people so she's had to wait until today, the first day of Konoha's first academy. There are several all over the city, this is just the first one. It also happens to be the academy primarily used by the clans, but the non-clan ninja aspirants are also allowed to go there. For some reason the Hokage, which she had learned was the man in the funny hat, put her in this academy rather than the third academy which is much closer to her apartment. Maybe he just wanted to make sure she could attend with Hinata-chan.

She's glad the man with the hair she decided is silver gave her a new clock. For some reason he really wants to make sure she's always on time. Anyways the new clock, the one he gave her for her sixth birthday, is an alarm clock so she can actually get up on time for the academy. Her sixth birthday was a weird one, the people had always been meaner to her on her birthday but for some reason on her most recent birthday they actually tried to hurt her physically, and ever since it became pretty normal for people to try. Actually now that she thinks about it ever since she saved Hinata-chan from the cloud guy people had been meaner to her. She doesn't really care, she'd save Hinata-chan every time even if people keep being mean for it.

Of course she can't really remember saving her, she just remembers being really scared Hinata-chan was going to get hurt and then she blacked out. But according to Hinata-chan and Hiashi she saved the blue haired girl.

Looking towards her wall clock she realizes she's been to busy thinking and not actually getting ready. Well she still has time. She decides to wear her favorite dress, a present from Hinata-chan on her sixth birthday. It's navy blue with lavender accents. She's pretty sure Hinata-chan had some reason for that but when she asked her Hinata-chan had just laughed and said it's because the navy blue goes well with her hair. She took that at face value, figuring Hinata-chan has no reason to lie about it. She wears black shorts underneath the dress since Hitomi says kunoichi should always wear shorts under a dress. The reasoning is lost on Naruko but Hitomi really wants her to so she does. She moves to brushing her hair with the brush she had gotten over a year ago now. Her hair has grown out quite a bit, going down to her waist now.

She noticed something odd recently when blushing her hair, for some reason she always has two strands of hair sticking up when ever she wakes up, some times more. But these two strands are always in the same place and kind of make it looks like she has rabbit ears, or maybe horns? She can brush it out like the rest of her bed head. Maybe she just sleeps funny.

Brushing her teeth (she doesn't get why but Hinata-chan says she needs to) and eating a quick breakfast of instant ramen she sets out towards the academy. Arriving about half an hour later she goes in and looks for class 103 the classroom she's going to be in for the next six years, assuming she doesn't decide she would rather do something other than being a ninja, maybe a florist, she likes her garden a lot.

Stepping in she she looks around for Hinata-chan. She quickly picks out her white, kind of lavender, eyes as they stare at her. She also faintly notices her veins fading into her temple. Guess she was using the Byakugan to see when she'd arrive. Naruko thinks it's pretty cool Hinata-chan can see through walls. Smiling she runs up the steps and slides into the seat next to her. "Hey Hinata-chan!"

"Good morning, Naruko-chan." Hinata says smiling softly at the shorter girl. The two girls fall into small conversation as other kids begin to filter into the classroom. The two observe them as they come. The first to arrive is a trio of kids, a tired looking boy, who Naruko realizes is actually asleep and is just being dragged along by the other two. A large boy who is managing to eat a bag of chips while using one hand to carry the tired boy, Naruko briefly wonders if he'd teach her how to do that. Lastly is a blonde girl currently insulting the tired boy but still helping to bring him in. The tired boy groans.

"Troublesome."

"Honestly Shika, you're to lazy."

The plump boy speaks up. "Calm down Ino you're being to harsh. Want a chip?"

"No thanks Choji, I still think he's to lazy." So she and Hinata-chan are not the only friends going in. Guess that makes sense.

It's a few minutes later that another student who sticks out walks in, this one wearing sunglasses and a large coat. He looks kind of mysterious. What if he has no eyes? That would be weird. Or what if he has sharp teeth hidden underneath the coat? Or maybe he just really buff and he's shy? He quietly makes his way up the steps but as he passes by Naruko he does something odd. And makes an odd sound. It's sort of like he's vibrating, or maybe buzzing? Is he pretending to be a bee? When she turns her body he flinches and quickly goes up the stares, moving to the farthest corner away from her. Oh so does he just not like her like most people? Well that's pretty normal.

Turning back to the front of the room she notices another boy walk in. A boy with black hair and black eyes. He's pretty pale, and kind of thin too. Though not as thin as she was a year ago. He looks pretty confident, maybe he's trained a lot. His hair was kind of funny looking, kind of like a ducks butt. Maybe she should get him a hair brush. He looks towards her and then oddly enough blushes. Hinata-chan used to do that a lot, she still does some times. Maybe he's not as confident as she thought.

Her thoughts are interrupted as she notices another girl walking in, one with pink hair. It's kind of pretty. Though Naruko thinks it would be better if she didn't use it to cover her forehead. The girl wears a red dress and looks around hesitantly before moving to sit alone. As she walks past Naruko says "Your hair looks pretty." She meant it and also thought the girl could use a confidence boost. She fails to notice Hinata behind her activating her Byakugan while staring down the pink haired girl, she flicks her eyes away to signal for her to leave. The girl flinches and moves away, much like the boy earlier. Naruko sighs, guess there goes another person who doesn't like her. Hinata-chan pats her on the shoulder and she smiles. Well at least Hinata-chan is there for her.

The last student of interest to walk in is a boy with spiky brown hair and red triangles on his cheeks. He is wearing a gray hoodie with a fur lined hood. He's the last student to walk in and walk to the seat next to her and sits down. When he sits next to her she realizes he also smells of wet dog. Does he just like dogs? She likes dogs, but they don't like her. She briefly wonders why he sat next to her only to realize there were no open seats. Well she doesn't mind, maybe he'll be a friend.

The students sit chattering among themselves for a few minutes before the door slides open once more and a man with a scar across his nose walks in. He calls out. "Alright quiet down, I'm going to take roll. When I call your name stand up and tell the class one thing about yourself along with your goal in becoming a ninja. If you don't have one just say so." It's not like all these children will just know why they wanted to be a ninja. "Now first up, Aburame Shino." The boy with sunglasses stands up.

"I am the heir of the Aburame clan and I am becoming a ninja to be able to lead the clan in the future." The boy sits down.

"Akimichi Choji."

The plump boy stands and speaks, still munching on chips. Naruko realizes it's actually a new bag. "I like eating and want to be strong like my Tou-chan." The scarred man goes down the list naming a few kids that Naruko finds weirdly bland.

"Haruno Sakura" The pink haired girl stands up.

"My mom is on the council and I want to be a ninja like her." Naruko note's that she didn't actually say anything about herself but she guess it counts if the sensei is okay with it.

"Hyuuga Hinata"

"I'm the heiress of the Hyuuga clan and I am becoming a ninja to be a good clan head, and to protect Naruko-chan." She says smiling at the red head to her right.

"Inuzuka Kiba" The spiky haired boy stands up with a smirk on his face.

"My family uses ninken in combat and I hope to be the strongest in my family."

The list continues once more with the weirdly bland kids before the instructor says. "Nara Shikamaru." Only to be met with silence. Waiting a few moments and seeing no one standing he says. "Is Nara Shikamaru here?" A loud smack echoes through the room, the class turns to see the tired boy rubbing the back of his head while the blonde girl hisses something at him. With a groan he stands and says.

"I'm tired and I'm becoming a ninja because it would be to troublesome not to." Naruko doesn't really get it, wouldn't it be easier not to be a ninja? The tired boy sits back down and seems to go to sleep again.

"Answer when called on next time. Now Uchiha Sasuke."

The dark haired boy with the duck butt hair style stands and says. "I like tomatoes and want to be strong like my Onii-chan."

"Uzumaki Naruko."

"I like ramen. I don't really know why I want to be a ninja." It's true, she doesn't know why. It's not like she is the heiress to a clan, and she doesn't particularly care for the village. The Hokage had tried to convince her that she should try and be like him. She figured that won't work since everyone hates her. At the end of the day she guesses she became a ninja because Hinata-chan is going to and she wants to protect her.

The instructor goes down the rest of the list finishing with the blonde girl, she's the only one who had yet to speak. "Yamanaka Ino."

"I love fashion and I want to learn my clans techniques. And watch out for these two." She says gesturing to Shikamaru and Choji, fondness present in her tone.

"Alright now that we're done with roll let me break down how our schedule for the next year will go." He says as he looks around the class, only to be interrupted by Kiba.

"Hey sensei you never told us your name."

"Right my apologies, I'm Umino Iruka and I will be your sensei for the next six years. Now as for our schedule. In the morning we will be having light exercise to get you all used to working out, some times it will be drills and other times we'll be playing games. Following that we'll have four hours of civilian subjects. Those being Math, English, Science, and History. Then you will be given an hour long break for lunch and recess. After that we will be having three hours of ninja theory. It will be split into three subjects. Chakra Theory, Ninjutsu Theory, and Basic Stealth. Now any questions?"

Sasuke speaks up this time. "Why are we spending time on civilian subjects when we're going to be ninja?"

"Because sometimes ninja are injured in the field and must live civilian lives as a result, and some of you might decide you don't want to be ninja, and this way you won't be to far behind your peers who have begun civilian school. Plus we want our ninja to have a basic idea of how the world works." That answer was enough to satisfy the Uchiha.

* * *

Naruko had found out why that Shino boy seemed to dislike her and it wasn't because he hates her like everyone else. Apparently the boy has bugs living inside him and they, like all other animals, don't like her, and they won't settle down when he's near her. He corrected her about the dislike part. They don't dislike her or hate her, they're afraid of her. She can't imagine why.

Hinata knew exactly why they're afraid of her. She was awake when Naruko-chan went berserk. With a power like that animals are just naturally afraid of the small girl.

Aside from that not a lot had changed in the course of the last year at the academy. She hadn't really made any new friends. She tried with that pink haired girl but for some reason the other girl didn't seem to like her when other people were around, especially Hinata-chan. Naruko didn't want to be friends with someone who won't publicly admit they're her friend. So she moved on from the shy girl.

She had sort of made friends with the lazy boy and his friends, but it was more just they got along in class and would sometimes talk about random things. But they never tried to talk out of class and never really went farther than sort of knowing each other.

She had almost been friends with Kiba but when he brought her over to play one time all of the dogs in his clan compound freaked out and she was never invited again.

Sasuke was the only one actively trying to be her friend but he would always blush weirdly and he made Hinata-chan mad for some reason. She thought it was weird. She had also noticed something, Hinata-chan had made a lot of enemies. Hinata-chan really didn't like Sakura or Sasuke. Even though they had never been mean to her. Naruko didn't get it, the Uchiha even seems to want to be friends.

A few kids had dropped out to pursue civilian life, Naruko couldn't remember their names though. She was still weirded out by how bland most of the other kids are, so she didn't even try to be friends with them.

Much to her delight she had grown a bit in the last year, gaining a full two inches of height. She now stood at a proud 3'4". Well she was proud of it but she was still the shortest kid in class. Hinata-chan had grown more than her, before she was only an inch taller but now she stood at 3'7". Naruko is sure she'll catch up. She's gotta be bigger than Hinata-chan to protect her. Bodyguards are always super beefy and tall.

* * *

Something weird happened during her second year at the academy. For some reason Sasuke suddenly got way more popular and also seemed to stop blushing around her. Or making expressions other than anger really.

Hinata-chan had told her his whole family died in one night, but she doesn't get why he'd be more popular for that. She also doesn't get why suddenly a bunch of girls in class seemed to start disliking her. Something about "trying to take their Sasuke-kun" or whatever it is they go on about. She said she wasn't trying to take anybody but they sited her long hair as trying to get him to like her. She doesn't get it, she grew her hair out because she liked being able to play with it, and because Hinata-chan seemed to like it.

When she asked Hinata-chan about the long hair thing she finally explained that apparently Sasuke had like liked her, and now that he's popular the other girls are mad at her. They all seem to think he likes long hair because she had long hair and he had a crush on her. She asked Hinata-chan if she should cut it short because she doesn't like Sasuke like that (boys are gross). Hinata-chan was against that so she didn't cut it.

Naruko didn't really like Sasuke's new fans but she still didn't really have a problem with the boy. It's not his fault his family died, and it's not his fault all these girls (and boys) seemed to think he's really cool for that. Now that she thinks about it isn't that kind of weird? Why would these people think it's cool that his family is dead? Did they dislike his family as much as they dislike her? Maybe.

Ino and Sakura also started acting weird. The two became friends and then enemies. She didn't understand that, she could never bring herself to dislike her friends, well friend. The two girls had become friends after Ino stopped the bland kids from bullying Sakura for her large forehead (which really was only slightly bigger than average). Then Sasuke's family died and they didn't like each other anymore. Hinata-chan told her that they both like liked him and started fighting over him until they weren't friends anymore. Naruko asked if that would happen to her and Hinata-chan if they both started liking the same boy. Naruko didn't really like boys but she said it while thinking about Ino and Sakura so a boy was the one in question. Hinata-chan had told her that won't ever happen. She doesn't see how but it's not like she wants to lose Hinata-chan's friendship so she didn't push it.

The second year also brought with it a new curriculum. The only real change was that instead of doing basic physical exercise they're now practicing Taijutsu, though they are still exercising. Today they start another new part of the curriculum. They were about to unlock their chakra. The class is currently gathered outside. Iruka-sensei was explaining chakra again, he's done that a lot in the past year and a half. She's pretty sure that's all the chakra theory class is, just different ways of explaining what chakra is.

Finally he gets to something new. "Now, I'm going to teach you how to find and harness your chakra." Naruko isn't the only who perked up upon hearing that. The entire class is suddenly paying attention, well almost the entire class, a few of the clan heirs aren't. Those being Shikamaru, who is to busy sleeping, Hinata-chan who already knows how to use her chakra, and Sasuke who Naruko guesses is in the same boat as Hinata-chan.

"First I want everyone to sit down in the lotus position. Then close your eyes." Naruko does so before gasping. The voice that helped her save Hinata-chan told her to do the same thing back then. Is Iruka-sensei the voice in her head? No that doesn't make any sense, the voice in her head was female. At least she thinks it was, she can't really remember it to clearly. "Now I want you to clear your mind. Once you've done so look inside yourself for a ball, it might be big or small but just look for a ball." Okay so maybe his instructions are not exactly the same, the voice wanted her to focus on nature and Hinata-chan and on being still.

She does as Iruka-sensei instructed and looks for a ball. After what feels like hours she finds it. The ball is bigger than her, like maybe the size of the Hokage tower or something. The ball is blue and seems to be made of some weird energy, chakra given what she's doing. She wonders if this is what chakra looks like to Hinata-chan when she uses her eyes.

Looking around she notices it's mostly dark in this place. Well dark doesn't really cover it, it's pitch black save for the ball. Looking down she sees something strange, another light, not blue like her chakra. Turning around she sees another ball. Though this one is much larger than hers and it seems to be shifting between being yellow, red, and white. Right now it's mostly yellow and red. It kind of looks like the three colors are pushing against each other. The red seems to almost turn towards her. And then weird black rings and commas appear in it. It sort of looks like an eye, albeit a weird one. The eye like thing turns and looks right at her fully. She gasps and backs away. Bumping into her blue chakra ball. Before she can think on the sensation her eyes snap open as she sees Hinata-chan looking at her with concern.

"Hinata-chan what's going on?"

"You suddenly started pulsing chakra we were worried you'd exhaust yourself. . ." Hinata trails off as she realizes the smaller girl is shaking, she'd only seen her this terrified once. It had been Naruko-chan's seventh birthday. It was also the first time the villagers actively tried to hunt down the red head. The girl managed to run into the compound bleeding and with a broken arm and ribs. Seeing her so afraid again Hinata does the only thing she can. She hugs the shaking girl and whispers over and over again. "It will be okay Naru-chan."

The rest of the class is silently staring before Iruka distracts them, he might not like the girl but he doesn't hate her, and seeing the little girl so terrified is enough to make him want to defend her. He became a ninja so children wouldn't have to be terrified like that anymore. "Alright, she's just a little overloaded from using to much chakra. Now I believe the rest of you still haven't accessed it yet. And Shikamaru wake up!" The class goes back to meditating while the Nara groans.

What was that thing she saw? Why does she have two chakra sources? Or is it technically four? Does each color show a different source, or do the balls mean different sources. Is this why people think she's a demon? Because of the abnormal chakra source? Is she actually a demon, and that's just her demon side or something? Her thoughts are interrupted by Hinata-chan speaking.

"Iruka-sensei, since this is the last class today can we leave early, Ko-san is already waiting for us." She says with her Byakugan active. Iruka with a bit of hesitance nods and says.

"I wouldn't normally allow it but you've both completed the work. Just don't expect this to be a regular occurrence."

"Thank you sensei," Naruko shakily stands on her feet, with Hinata-chan's help. "Now come on Naru-chan let's get you home." Hinata-chan then whispers in her ear. "And if you want you can tell me what happened." Naruko nods and they start to walk towards Ko. He is surprised to see them early and is about to scold them for apparently skipping class, there are no other kids leaving early so he knows class didn't get dismissed already, only to stop upon seeing the state the red head is in. He saw her on her seventh birthday so he knows all to well how she acts when she is terrified. It almost looks like she's more terrified now than she was back then. The man remains silent while Hinata leads them to Naruko's apartment. Ko waits outside, knowing it's better to let the girls be alone. Though he activates his Byakugan every five seconds to check on them.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Several moments pass in silence, "That's okay, I won't-" Naruko interrupts her.

"N-No if I can talk to anyone it's you." Hinata realizes it's pretty bad, Naruko-chan never stutters like that. Not unless her mouth is in to much pain to talk properly. "I found my chakra." Hinata knows there's more so she waits for Naruko to continue. "But then I found another chakra source. A-And it turned into some weird eye thing. I-It looked right at me. I-I was so scared." Naruko-chan was crying in fear at the memory. Hinata hugs her in response, rubbing her back.

How could Naruko-chan have two chakra sources? Well that at least explains the power Naruko-chan used when the cloud nin threatened her. Seeing the red head calm down a bit she says. "Naruko-chan wha-" Naruko interrupts again.

"Naru-chan." Hinata nods knowing what she meant.

"Naru-chan what did the eye look like?"

"I-It was red, with several rings around the pupil, I didn't count how many, and,"

"It had tomoe in the rings, they look like commas." Naruko nods dumbly and asks.

"How did you know?"

"Naru-chan. . . That's. . . What your eyes looked like on the night you saved me. When you blacked out."

"Oh. . . Hinata-chan am I a demon?"

"I don't think so, a demon wouldn't save me from being kidnapped." Naruko nods accepting the answer. She's still unsure but if nothing else she doesn't act like a demon and her friend doesn't think she's one. That's enough.

The two girls went to Ichiraku Ramen for dinner that night, it's Naruko's comfort food, and her favorite food. Hinata-chan usually tells her not to have it at every meal, though she can't really stop her from keeping it at home. It helps that people can't sell her rotten ramen, ramen just never lasts that long in the stores and has incredibly long expiration dates. Anyways because she usually has dinner with Hinata-chan she's forced to eat those nasty vegetables, though at least she's not super thin because of it. Between Hinata-chan's comforting and the ramen she'd calmed down a lot in the past few hours and was back to her usual self.

Hinata was glad to see Naruko-chan was no longer upset. The two seven year old girls finished their meal and Naruko was taken back to her apartment. " Thanks for today, Hina-chan." She says smiling brightly at Hinata. The white eyed girl blushes, Naruko hadn't shortened her name like that before. She likes it. Plus she loves it when the red head smiles at her like that.

* * *

The fourth year of the academy marked another major change in curriculum. Two of the civilian subjects were removed, those being English, and Science. Well sort of, Science and Math were merged into one class. Those two classes will remain for the rest of their time at the academy. History was left in because knowing the history of the elemental nations is important both for preventing wars and for knowing how to behave on missions in other countries. Advanced Math was left in (which has science in it but for some reason the subject is just not mentioned in the name of the class) so the shinobi can have a greater understanding of how the world around them works. They replaced the two hours of civilian subjects with agility training and made Taijutsu it's own full class while also making the first period dedicated to strength training. Along with that they've moved on to intermediate stealth, which also contains how to make traps and disguises. Along with Chakra theory putting a greater focus on teaching them how to manipulate their chakra and learning the basics of chakra control. Lastly Ninjutsu theory is slated to teach them how do the Kawarimi towards the end of the second month.

The academy curriculum wasn't the only thing that changed over the years. Naruko had grown some more managing to grow to 4 feet tall exactly. She was still the shortest kid in her class but any growth makes her happy. She continued to grow her hair out, it now reached down to her lower thighs. Aside from Hina-chan most of the other girls in class seemed upset that her hair was so much longer than theirs. They still didn't get that she's not interested in Sasuke.

She couldn't wear the dress Hina-chan gave her anymore though, well she can, but it rides a little to high and is kind of uncomfortable, luckily Hina-chan saw that and for her tenth birthday gave her a new one. The color scheme was the same as the previous, but this one was also made to look good with mesh undershirts, something she had taken to wearing when she turned nine.

Speaking of Hina-chan, the white eyed girl had also grown, she now stood at 4'5". Naruko couldn't help but pout at that, she wanted to be tall enough to protect Hina-chan. Though she's come to realize height is not that big a deal. She had realized that during Taijutsu practice. She may be the shortest kid in class but she's the fifth best at Taijutsu. Hina-chan and Sasuke tend to compete for first. Kiba has third place locked down and Choji has fourth. Of course that's not to say Naruko can't win against those four, she just loses against them more than she wins. Though she always loses when Hina-chan goes all out on her.

Interestingly despite the fact that Hina-chan insists that she keeps her hair long, the white eyed girl likes to keep her hair short. She never let it drop below her shoulders.

Kiba for some reason randomly decided he didn't like her now. He always makes fun of her for some reason, calling her things like Dobe or Naruko-baka, which now that she thinks about it Sakura started calling her by those names as well. Naruko couldn't understand why, sure she sometimes failed the written tests, and she has some trouble with math. But she was a fine fighter. Maybe it's because when ever they do the leaf sticking exercise the leaf turns to dust. Well that is not entirely accurate, she could get it to stick to her forehead briefly but whenever she lost control the leaf would be violently thrown off her head before being destroyed on impact with nearby walls or trees. Naruko asked Hina-chan why Kiba started being mean and she said it's because he's dumb and doesn't know how to deal with his feelings.

Kiba aside, Iruka-sensei had started to be nice to her. He would occasionally take her out for ramen. He actually started being a lot nicer ever since the incident during her second year. He had apologized to her at one point for the way he had acted before, she waved it off since that's what normal people do. He only seemed get upset at that. She asked if he was mad at her and he said "No, I'm mad at myself and mad at the village. You've done nothing wrong Naruko."

Many kids were complaining to Iruka-sensei today. He had just told the class that starting today recess will be replaced by an additional class. It's technically self study, where they'll pick a ninja art to study, the first week will be spent looking for a subject but most kids already have something in mind. Most kids are picking Ninjutsu. Hina-chan is apparently going to pick a class on the use of herbs as both a healing tool and as a weapon. Naruko was tempted to take the same class because she loves her garden and being able to use it as a ninja would be cool, plus Hina-chan is in the class. But she wants to try something new.

Naruko spent the next week looking into the different arts before finally deciding she wants to do Genjutsu, something is just drawing her to it. Though she also found she was drawn to Fuinjutsu, but she doesn't have the patience for it, nor the time in the short thirty minute class. She might pursue it more when she's a full fledged ninja with more choice in how she spends her time.

She quickly found out that despite the fact she felt a natural pull towards Genjutsu she had next to no talent for it. She just didn't have the chakra control for it. But that just means she has to master the leaf sticking exercise. She started practicing the exercise during her self study class, as well as for an extra hour outside of class.

By the end of the year she had managed to get the leaf to stick to her forehead for the full duration of her her self study. She still couldn't perform any Genjutsu though so she asked Iruka-sensei if he could teach her the next chakra control exercise before they went on spring break. He told her she needs to use chakra to walk up a tree. She spent spring break practicing it with Hina-chan, she apparently needed it to advance in the Jyuken. She could only stick for a few minutes by the time they started the fifth year of the academy.

The fifth year also brought two surprising new changes, one more surprising then the other. The less surprising of the two was that they were starting to learn how to use kunai and shuriken, they've cut down on strength and agility training by twenty minutes each and adding it to kunai and shuriken training. A few of the kids were concerned that they would grow weak if they don't train strength and agility as much in class. Iruka-sensei used it as a chance for an extra lesson.

"When you become a genin, you will be expected to train on your own sometimes, your genin sensei will only be required to teach you for four hours a day. If you truly wish to excel as a ninja you'll train on your own time as well." Naruko took it to heart and started to run laps around her block on weekends. And trying to run up and down the trees rather than just walking. She couldn't afford any weights so she started doing push-ups and sit-ups for as long as she could. She would also do squats but she's pretty sure she'd get more out of that if she had weights.

But what had surprised her is that they have an assistant instructor now. For the next two years a man by the name of Touji Mizuki will be helping them with ninjutsu training, Taijutsu training, and shuriken and kunai training. He seemed nice enough but Naruko got bad vibes from him. Her instincts would later prove right.

After having lost to Hina-chan in a spar again he pulled her aside and showed her the proper way to use the academy stance. When she next sparred against Hina-chan, the white eyed girl asked her why she was using an incorrect stance. After telling the other girl what happened they made a plan for Hina-chan to watch him with her Byakugan when he instructs Naruko next. She could use her Byakugan to see if his chakra produces an irregularity when he does. If so then it would mean he's lying.

That's exactly what happened. So Naruko stopped listening to him in class even if he scolded her for it. As an unfortunate side effect the rest of the class joined in on Kiba and Sakura's teasing. It seems the class collectively decided she's dumb. Sure after Mizuki showed up she shot to the bottom of the class rankings but she's pretty sure that's not her fault. She had managed to start giving Kiba a hard time in maintaining his third place position in Taijutsu. And when she compares tests with Hina-chan it seems that someone else had been changing her answers to incorrect ones. The correct ones can still faintly be seen having not been erased properly. Naruko knows she wasn't erasing answers so it had to be someone else, probably Mizuki.

Well at least Hina-chan didn't mock her, nor did Shikamaru or Choji. Shino didn't either but he outright told her that while he thinks she will be a fine ninja he can't stay calm near her. She doesn't grudge him for that.

They had also started learning another new jutsu in class, the Henge no Jutsu, a transformation technique. It allowed the user to change their appearance. Naruko liked the technique a lot. Hina-chan told her to try shopping while transformed. After that Naruko suddenly found herself with a lot more pocket change than she used to have. She could finally afford fruit to keep in her apartment, well fruit that isn't rotten. She also could finally save up for training weights. It took a few months but when she finally got them she was able to up her training a lot.

Hina-chan had become really good with poison and medicinal herbs in the last year. Her medicine was always so nice after the people of the village attacked her. It made her feel better so fast. She had asked the Hokage recently if they'll still be allowed to hurt her when she becomes a ninja. He said no, they could receive capital punishment for attacking a ninja of the village.

He failed to mention they shouldn't be attacking her regardless. When he realized that the villagers were happier when allowed to harm the girl he told his Anbu to only interrupt if it goes beyond breaking one or two bones. He had decided long ago that if it's for the good of the village he'd sacrifice Minato's child. He shudders thinking about what Jiraiya and Tsunade will do when they realize what he's been allowing to happen to their goddaughter. Well if nothing else he should be able to rebuff the healer by saying she ignored his call to take care of the girl. But he had been sending Jiraiya false reports on the girls safety for years, the sage would probably try to kill he when he finds out. At least the girl still trusted him.

He still defended her during council meetings and made sure laws could not be passed that would directly harm the girl. He might turn a blind eye to the physical abuse but it's a disaster waiting to happen if he lets discriminatory laws pass. Speaking of the council his son has replaced Fugaku on the Ninja council. He was actually the runner up for the position. Maito Gai had been elected but rejected it saying he didn't want to attend "Unyouthful meetings." His son figured it would be easy so he accepted the position.

He didn't really have to defend Naruko much anymore after he started turning a blind eye to the physical abuse, the councilors seemed sated by it, though he did notice he had lost the trust of both Shikaku (and in turn Inoichi and Choza) and Hiashi, but they still obeyed at the end of the day. Ultimately he thinks it was worth it. He can't bare to think of the alternative.

* * *

Naruko had finally figured out how to cast a Genjutsu. It was the start of her final year at the academy and she finally had gained the chakra control to cast Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu. It only took her mastering the tree climbing exercise. Of course that's not all, she also learned how to detect and dispel Genjutsu. She may not have an aptitude for it but she's at least better than the rest of her classmates.

This year they would be learning Bunshin no Jutsu, while also taking a more advanced form of the previous classes from last year. She found that Jutsu to be way to hard, when she asked Iruka-sensei about it he said she likely needs better chakra control, and told her about the water walking exercise. She figured by the name that it's the same basic thing as tree walking. Since she couldn't practice the new exercise during her self study she had taken to trying to learn more Genjutsu.

She was still at the bottom of the class, but she had surpassed Kiba now in Taijutsu and was firmly in third. She had even managed to beat Hina-chan a few times while the Hyuuga was going all out. The only reason she's at the bottom now is because of her poor test scores, and her inability to do the Bunshin. Because of that she's either barely passing or barely failing most of her theory classes. Which leaves her firmly at the bottom of the ranks (of kids who will actually graduate).

Naruko winces as she watches Hina-chan brutally disable Kiba in their spar. He had been extra mean to her yesterday and Hina-chan was expressing her displeasure physically in this mornings Taijutsu practice. Hina-chan had long stopped vocalizing how she feels about others making fun of the red head. Most learned their lesson and only did so when Hina-chan wasn't in earshot, or right after Taijutsu practice hoping she'd forget by the next day. She never did. Kiba and Sakura never learned either lesson and still mocked Naruko whenever possible.

As the end of the day approaches so to does Hina-chan, apparently she has something she wants to say to the Uzumaki. They head to the playground where they first met. Ko had stopped escorting them. When Naruko asked Hiashi why he simply said "Hinata is far more ferocious when you're around than Ko could ever be." Naruko didn't fully understand but she can at least agree Hina-chan is strong, probably the strongest kid in class.

They sit next to each other on the swings. "So what did you want to talk about, Hina-chan?"

The white eyed girl looks right at her and say. "Naruko." The red head is taken aback by that, the only time Hina-chan calls her Naruko is when she is scolding her, but she usually uses her surname to. The last time she'd simply been called Naruko without her surname by Hina-chan she was four. Before she can ask what that's about the lavender themed girl continues. "I like girls."

"So do I what's your point?" She asks confused, of course she liked girls, Hina-chan is a girl and she likes Hina-chan.

"No Naruko, I like girls like Sakura and Ino like boys."

"Oh."

"Do you not like me anymore, I know it's kind of weird." The white eyed girl asks with the smallest hint of worry in her voice.

"Naw, I still like you Hina-chan, I'd never dislike you for being you. I'm not sure if it's weird or not, but you're pretty weird Hina-chan" She meant no harm by it and Hinata knew it. Naruko had firmly decided she was weird the moment the white eyed girl had stood up for the red head publicly.

"Would you think it weird if I told you I'm in love with you?"

"If you aren't in love with me I'd think it's pretty weird, because you don't typically lie to me."

"Would things change between us?"

"I don't really know, I've never thought about that stuff before, I guess it would change if I accepted. 'Cause if we started dating then we'd do things like kissing right? But I don't think it would change if I told you I don't feel the same way. At the end of the day you'd still be my best friend regardless of how I answer. Cause I wouldn't want to date you if it meant we can't still be best friends."

"Do you want to date me?"

"I'm not sure, like I said, I've never really thought about it."

Naruko could tell the conversation had stopped being hypothetical by that point. Hina-chan was asking her out, but she will wait until the other girl asks properly before she gives her answer.

"Naruko, I've been in love with you since we were five. I only realized it during our second year at the academy." Naruko blushes, she may have known it was coming but still hearing her best friend tell her that is enough to turn her red.

"Naruko will you go out with me?" A few moments pass as Hinata stares at Naruko before finally the still blushing redhead nods in agreement. She finally manages to gather her voice after a few minutes of silence.

"Yes, I may not be very good with this stuff but I'd like that." She hadn't been sure a few minutes ago but when finally asked she found she was only able to say yes.

* * *

The two girls showed up to class the next day holding hands. They never cared about what other people thought before and they still don't now. Naruko could have sworn she heard Iruka-sensei mutter the words "Finally" under his breath. The rest of the class seemed weirdly mixed on whether they liked the two girls new relationship or not. Kiba and Sasuke had both seemed disappointed. She found it kind of weird that Sasuke would be disappointed given that he seemed to lose interest in her years ago. Sakura and Ino both seemed relieved, along with most of the other girls in class (and a few boys). Shikamaru and Choji along with Shino didn't seem to care. Mizuki seemed disgusted.

Iruka-sensei quiets the class down and says. "There's only a few more months before you all graduate and become fully fledged Ninjas. During the final exam we will cover all topics we've gone over these past six years. Your self study will be applied as bonus points if you can show something you gained from it." Most kids groan at that, bonus points are great and all but most of them hadn't even managed to learn a single extra Jutsu, having not realized there were a lot of other things that would actually produce results. "During the last month of class you will be given a form to turn in requesting what kind of team composition you think you will fit in. It will be taken into consideration when we are creating teams. But it does not ensure anything for you, just increases your odds. Try not to just pick your friends for this." After that he moves on to regular class. The preteens all move outside for their morning fitness classes.

The strength training class goes by relatively uneventfully, though Naruko did learn a new word thanks to Kiba. He even made it alliterative so it sounded kind of cool, if he wasn't insulting her. He had said it while laughing at her. "The Dobe's a dumb dyke!" he seemed to find it really funny because he was in hysterics at that. She didn't know what dyke meant but when she asked Hina-chan what it meant she said it was a rude term for girls who like girls. She doesn't really care that he insulted her but then he proceeded to call Hina-chan one as well. As luck would have it she was up against Kiba today. She briefly wonders if Iruka-sensei is just punishing him in advance for being mean. Stepping into the circle Kiba says.

"I'll show you how much better a man is when I kick your ass."

Naruko fires back automatically. "I don't see how you could show me anything about men, I only see a boy." Naruko flicks her eyes up to the white pup resting on the boys head, as soon as she does the pup stiffens and flees out of the ring, not wanting to go near the girl. "Also I fail to see why I would like men more if they hurt me." She knows it's what normal people do but she still doesn't like being hurt. Hina-chan never hurts her outside of sparring, and she likes Hina-chan a lot for that, and for so much more. Huh, now that she thinks about it there is a lot about the white eyed girl she likes, she just never really thought about. For example she liked how Hina-chan was super nice to her little sister, or would save the red head from her mothers death cuddles (that's what Naruko had taken to calling them) or how Hina-chan would just look at her and smile sometimes and that would make Naruko feel like there are a million butterflies in her stomach. A weird feeling but weird isn't bad.

Iruka-sensei calls out. "Make the seal of confrontation" They both do so and Iruka-sensei calls for them to begin. Naruko rushes forward in the basic academy stance and throws a punch. Kiba side steps easily enough only to be caught unawares as Naruko whirls and connects a kick to his face, the added weights (She had steadily been upping them since she got them) throwing him back and out of the ring. Iruka-sensei calls out. "Winner Naruko! Now make the seal of reconciliation." Naruko offers it but Kiba slaps her hand away and walk off whining to Akamaru, his dog, about him running away. Iruka-sensei calls out to Kiba as he walks off "Don't forget you have detention for the use of discriminatory language towards another classmate." The rest of the class learns the lesson well, don't insult Hinata in front of Naruko. And if they don't want detention they shouldn't talk like that in front of Iruka-sensei either.

Ninja villages were generally against acting the way Kiba did. The general consensus is that they lie, kill, and cheat for a living. So then why should they care if someone else chooses to spend his or her own free time dating someone of the same sex? The thing is civilians outside ninja villages tend to be more against it so the general attitude is to keep it inside the village. The last thing they need is some noble complaining about a gay ninja couple just because it's illegal in the rest of the country.

* * *

The last few months go by uneventfully and soon the day is upon them, the genin exam is today.

* * *

A/N Well that was the longest chapter yet. I'm feeling pretty good about it honestly. I also hope you all are looking forward to the start of canon as much as I am. So I'm curious how do you all feel about the confident and kind of overprotective Hinata? Or how about the confession, good, bad? I don't really think it's to rushed, but I still want to hear what you all think. Or how about the Genjutsu user Naruko, were any of you expecting that? Well anyways until next time.

CM 10/27/2018


	4. The Genin Exam

Naru-chan was brimming with excitement. Hinata was just as excited but she was much quieter about it. Naru-chan wasn't normally particularly loud, but Hinata had come to learn, and love, over the years how much louder the redhead gets when she's actually interested or happy. When she's bored the girl is quiet most of the time. Hinata loves both sides of her.

They were currently waiting in the classroom for the exams to begin. Their normal schedule of physical activity in the mornings had been flipped today, to ensure that no one was too injured to take the written exams. The written exams were broken into four tests. Each worth 10 points, except the one covering civilian subjects which is worth five points. Then they would move outside to do the physical portion of the exam where they would be tested on Taijutsu, their agility and their strength. Along with that they would be tested in their use of kunai and shuriken. Taijutsu is worth 12 points and weaponry is worth 10 points while the agility and strength are each worth four. Then they would get an hour long break for lunch before being tested on their ability to use stealth. That would be worth 15 points. Then they would be tested in the use of the leaf sticking exercise, that would be worth 7 points. The final required test would be over the three Jutsu learned in the academy where they could score up to 13 points. After that they could take a bonus test for up to 10 points on their chosen subject.

Naruko was mostly worried about the written test. She's pretty sure her scores will be made false again. And she was a little worried about the Bunshin no Jutsu. She had finished the water walking exercise, but she could only barely make five functioning clones, any less and they all turned out dead looking. She knew the other subjects would be fine, though she found stealth to be hard with her red hair. Hopefully she can get the full 10 points on the bonus with her Genjutsu. She had managed to learn another new one called Nise no Kankaku: Hyaku Saku Hana and so she's pretty confident she'll get the bonus points.

Hinata was confident in all fields, she had started to pull ahead of Sasuke in Taijutsu making her the best at it in class. She was definitely going to be Kunoichi of the Year, and if she can manage to pull ahead during the exams she'll also claim the spot for rookie of the year. Hinata could see the worry in Naru-chan and couldn't help but wonder why her girlfriend, thinking that still makes her heart flutter, never told the Hokage or Iruka-sensei she was being sabotaged. Hinata had said she would tell for her but Naru-chan stopped her by saying. "It's okay, it just means people will underestimate me." Hinata thought it was unfair to the redhead but she didn't push the issue, seeing that it would help her in the long run, so long as she doesn't fail because of it.

The two girls had both grown quite a bit since their fourth year at the academy. Naruko now stood at 4'6", still five inches shorter than what's average for a girl her age, but she was happy with it. Hina-chan had grown to be 4'11" tall, the exact average. She kind of wishes she was taller if only because she doesn't like having to stand on her toes to kiss her girlfriend. Hina-chan seemed to enjoy it though. One thing that had changed though was their weight. While Hina-chan had to be lean for her fighting style and that lead to her being on the lower end of the weight spectrum, Naruko had only increased her weights giving her a denser muscle mass. Making her heavy. Where Hina-chan weighed 89 pounds, Naruko weighed closer to 95,.

Speaking of her weights Naruko had realized the amount of weight she has strapped to her limbs is apparently pretty abnormal. She found out from a weird green guy that most ninja only use upwards of five pounds on each wrist and leg. Naruko was close to thirty. Even with her weights off Naruko still tends to lose to Hina-chan in sparring. She hopes her Jonin-sensei will teach her a new Taijutsu style. The Academy style, while good for teaching the basics of combat can only go so far (it doesn't help that she can't trust any instruction Mizuki gives her in it, so she's stalled), and it certainly can't match up against the Jyuken or other clan techniques. Naruko only wins those matches with brute force. She had tried to learn one of the other styles in Konoha's public domain but images on scrolls really isn't that helpful. All she really knows is that she'd like it if the style involved a lot of spins. She had grown really fond of spin kicking Kiba out of the ring. She may be short but she's grown very flexible, something Hina-chan laughs weirdly about whenever it's mentioned, because she wants to be well rounded physically. She makes sure to practice stretching every day, doing things like the splits and putting her legs behind her head and other flexibility exercises.

Another change seen in the two girls is that they've both changed their outfits. Hina-chan liked to wear loose navy blue pants that are taped around her ankles, along with an open jacket, it was a lighter shade of black with a few dark red stripes and short sleeves. Naruko had given it to her for her last birthday. Underneath the jacket she wears a light gray shirt with the Hyuuga clan crest on the chest. Hina-chan had also taken to wearing mesh underneath it all that slightly pokes out of the sleeves of the jacket.

Naruko hadn't stopped wearing dresses, but now she ties a sash around her waist to stop it from being too loose. She mainly wears a navy blue dress with a lavender swirl on the back. The swirl is made of vines and the vines expand out across the rest of the dress. The dress went down to her mid thigh, and she had black spats that poked out below it. Underneath the dress she still wore mesh undershirts that visibly covered her collar bone and acted as the sleeves of her outfit. Aside from all that she had finally started cutting her hair, she had decided enough is enough when it reached her feet and she started tripping on it. She still kept it long for Hina-chan but she made sure it didn't grow past her knees.

Speaking of her hair those two strands that look like ears had started to put up more resistance to being brushed out. She still could brush them down but she had to dedicate a lot more time to it in the mornings.

The last change of note hit Hina-chan harder than it did Naruko. They entered puberty, at least that's what Hina-chan called it. It was most apparent in that Hina-chan had started to grow boobs. Naruko did too but hers were pretty small in comparison. She's pretty sure her girlfriend was a C cup. The red head had started to give her girlfriend shoulder massages because apparently they were heavy and kind of hurt. Naruko didn't really get it. She could only barely be considered a B cup and her shoulders never hurt. Though maybe it's because she's used to walking around with extra weight already. Naruko wasn't the smallest girl in the chest department at least, that honor went to Sakura who was still flat as a board.

Wait no there was one more thing, Naruko had started bleeding out of nowhere and her stomach was cramping a lot. She asked the white eyed girl about it and was told it's something called a period. According to Hina-chan it would happen once a month for the next few decades. That made her wince because the cramps we're really painful. Hina-chan was so sweet though, she realized the older girls problem and started to give an herbal remedy she had made. It made her feel a lot better, the cramps were still there but they weren't quite so bad. Hina-chan made her sit and talk with Hitomi about something called Sex Ed (Many thought Ninja learn it in academy for the purposes of seduction, but in reality seduction isn't even mentioned until they become chunin or turn 16, whichever comes first). It's not taught in the academy because generally families teach it or the people in charge of the orphanage. Naruko just never got the chance because she was kicked out of the orphanage so young. Though it is taught in the civilian academies. Hitomi told her what puberty is and how babies are made.

It was good to know but it also made her a little sad, she wanted to start a family with Hina-chan one day, apparently she can't. Well they can still adopt, it's not like she has any problems with orphans.

Now that she thinks about it the Hyuuga clan became really weird around her after she started dating Hina-chan, the villagers got meaner but they always get meaner over time. Hitomi had started to take pictures of the two girls a lot more, and scolding Hina-chan for not asking sooner. Hiashi simply said he's fine with it but they will have a steep hill to climb in the future. Something about the elders and the caged bird. Hina-chan's little sister, Hanabi seemed weirdly fond of the redhead and at the same time mad at her. Mad because she claimed Naruko was taking her big sister away, but fond because she also seemed to want Naruko to become her big sister in the future. Ko had simply said Iruka owed him fifty ryo for their bet. She didn't know what the bet was for, but good for him.

Naruko had also met Hina-chan's cousin, Neji, he was a year older than them and was currently a genin. He was really mean to Hina-chan and her for some reason. He told Hina-chan when she was being introduced to him. "Dating a failure only proves to me that you're also a failure." Naruko doesn't get how she's a failure, she's plenty strong even if she is the dead last. He also went on about how it's their fate to separate for the good of the Hyuuga clan. Naruko didn't like that. She started to ignore the boy from then on.

They had also let the Ichiraku family know about their relationship. It went as expected, Ayame-nee squealed in excitement and Teuchi-ojisan just looked on proudly before menacingly staring at Hina-chan and saying. "You might be a ninja but you break her heart and I break you." Hina-chan said in response.

"I'd sooner die then hurt her." That made Naruko blush but she scolded Hina-chan for that, she never wants to hear her talk about dying.

Naruko is snapped back to the present as Hina-chan shakes her saying the tests are being passed out. Naruko nods and waits for Iruka-sensei to finish passing out the tests. Once all the tests are passed out she flips hers over and begins. She fills in her name and then looks at the test, oh so the first one is on Chakra Theory, easy enough. The questions were simple, they mostly asked what chakra is, just in different ways. She flies through the test easy enough, even if she missed an answer she's not to concerned her scores will be bad regardless of what she does. Upon walking up to Iruka-sensei sitting at the front she hands in her test and grabs the next one. She repeats this process for the next two tests, noting that she was one of the last students to finish testing. The Ninjutsu Theory test had taken her a while longer than the others, probably because most students chose ninjutsu for their self study.

The class was split into three groups upon heading outside, some kids were sent to the sparring ring, others to the kunai range, and the last group was sent to the empty field where they do strength and agility training. Naruko was in the second group while Hina-chan was put in the first.

The test was easy enough. There were three targets, the one farthest back is worth two points whenever it's hit, the one in the middle is worth 1 whenever it's hit and the closest one is only worth one point if hit in the bullseye. There are no points for missing but the two outer targets award double points for hitting the bullseye. They would stop as soon as they either ran out of kunai or reached ten points. Naruko hit the bullseye on the middle one twice, the outer one once, and the closest one twice. She managed to get ten points by using all five kunai. Once everyone was finished with kunai they moved onto shuriken. The test was the same, just with a different weapon. Once more Naruko scored full points by using all five shuriken.

Her group was rotated to the Taijutsu ring where Hina-chan's group had just finished and were moving to the field. She briefly wondered who is in charge over there, because Iruka-sensei is at the kunai range, and Mizuki is here at the Taijutsu ring. Guess she'll find out soon enough. Today they were sparring against Mizuki for the test. They simply had to last thirty seconds or knock him out of the ring for full points. Failing to do either of those they would be awarded points based on how long they lasted. When it was Naruko's turn to go up she noticed pretty quickly that Mizuki got tense. Oh guess he's going all out. Before he can call for them to begin she asks, "Hey Mizuki-sensei, can I take off my training weights before we begin?" Mizuki allows it not seeing what losing five or so pounds on each limb would do for her. She removes them quickly and jumps a few times to adjust to the change in weight.

Mizuki seeing she's ready calls for them to begin. He rushes forward and tries to kick her in the stomach and out of the ring. She jumps up flipping over his leg while she grabs it with her hands. Landing back on her feet and still holding the extended leg she throws him. He nearly flies out of the ring but manages to flip mid air and land on his feet. He had taken his eyes off her while flipping and landing only to find a foot lodged in his stomach when he looked back at her. The wind is knocked out of him and he falls backwards out of the ring. He stands and forces a smile. "Very good Naruko you'll receive full points for this test." That's what he gets for underestimating the girl, he'll keep that in mind when he finally gets rid of the demon. He had noticed that wasn't the academy style, it wasn't really a style at all, but the students are only required to last thirty seconds or knock him out of the arena, it doesn't matter what Taijutsu style they use.

A few more kids went after her and most of them managed to pass the test. Her group was moved to the field where she found an older boy, maybe 15 or 16, she didn't recognize waiting, he was wearing the chunin flak jacket. He wore one of the bandanna style forehead protectors, and had a pretty average face. Seeing them arrive he says "Hello, I'm Ryuugen Yatogo, and I will be instructing you all for today's test." He looks around the class before continuing. "I've set up an obstacle course in the field," he says while raising an arm and gesturing behind him, "I'll be timing how long it takes you to get through it, if you can make it through in under a minute then you will get full points, for every 10 seconds over a minute I'll be removing points. Upon completing the course you'll see a circle. It's a gravity array, made with fuinjutsu, when you step in it will activate and the gravity around you will double. It will continue to go up by a factor of one every 10 seconds until you collapse. You'll be graded based on how long you last. You get full points if you last until the second stage and if you can manage to get past it then you will be awarded two bonus points for every stage beyond it." That's interesting, she hadn't realized they would get extra points outside of the bonus test, but she guesses it makes sense.

Naruko realizes she forgot to put her weights back on, oh well at least that means she'll get through the obstacle course faster. She managed to get through the course in under thirty seconds, the fastest of any student in her class. The gravity array was easier than she thought it would be. The first stage, two times gravity, was pretty easy because she's used to walking around with more than double her weight. The second stage was making her sweat but she could tough it out. By the third stage she could only barely stand. By the fourth stage she felt like all her blood was gathering in her legs, she was feeling woozy. She barely made it to the fifth stage using force of will and almost made it to the sixth before falling over. Still most of the kids are looking at her in shock, most had only managed to make it to the second stage before dropping, the only other student to make it to the third stage was Sasuke, who she only just realized was in her group. She wonders how Hina-chan did when she took the test.

They were given their lunch break and Naruko ate with Hina-chan, apparently the other girl had aced all her physical tests as well. The white eyed girl had managed to last longer than Sasuke under the gravity array, she made it to the fourth stage, but she went slower than him during the obstacle course. Hina-chan had also dismantled Mizuki during Taijutsu sparring, without even using chakra (he still had to be capable of testing the other students). Instead she hit pressure points that can be released easier. While they were eating, their written tests had been scored and passed back. Hina-chan got full points in all subjects. Naruko looked at her own test and found she had averaged about half points on all subjects,except the civilian subject test wherein she was given zero points. Her scores were falsified once more. Her total score so far currently putting her at 51 points, she needs to get 19 more to pass and become a ninja. Hina-chan had actually already passed with 71 points.

Lunch ended and they were tested on stealth, it was a surprisingly simple affair where they merely had to avoid being found by the three chunin that tested them earlier for a minute and 30 seconds to get full points. If they were caught early then they would lose points for every five seconds they had failed to hide. They were sent in one at a time and given 20 seconds to find a place to hide. Hina-chan lasted the entire time while Naruko was caught in half a minute, her bright hair betraying her easily. Hina-chan had already locked down her position as a genin while Naruko still needed to earn 16 more.

Luckily the next test was covering the leaf sticking exercise which she had mastered years ago. She was proven right when she was easily able to get full points on it making it so she only needs to earn nine more points to pass. After that they went inside for the next and last phase of testing.

They started the Ninjutsu test, which apparently would also be combined with their self study test. They would be individually entering another room where Iruka-sensei and Mizuki would be evaluating their ninjutsu skills. They were called in alphabetically so Naruko had quite the wait ahead of her. She did excitedly congratulate Hina-chan when she walked out with her headband. When she asked what her score was in the end she said she got 116 points. Naruko hugged her brimming with excitement for the both of them since the considerably calmer girl wasn't expressing it, she seemed more concerned with something else. The two stayed and talked until Naruko got called in.

The Ninjutsu portion was simple according to Iruka-sensei. She would just have to show them the three academy jutsu without the Jutsu failing. "Now first, please perform the Henge." Naruko does so transforming into an exact copy of Hina-chan. Iruka-sensei nods and continues. "Now do the Kawarimi with that log in the corner, then Kawarimi back after ten seconds." Once more Naruko does as instructed with out much effort. Iruka-sensei nods once more and says "Alright now perform the Bunshin no Jutsu and produce three clones."

"Iruka-sensei would it be alright if I produce more clones?"

"Yes you may, but know there is no bonus for the extra clones." Naruko nods and makes six clones that all seem perfectly healthy. Iruka-sensei smiles at her and says, "Congratulations Naruko, come up and take your headband, would you like to take the bonus test?"

"No that's alright, I'm not in the running for the top spot anyways so I don't need it." She had barely passed with 73 points but she still passed, so she doesn't really care to do the bonus test. Naruko tied the headband around her forehead only to stop as she did. It felt weird there, like the world seemed dimmer, but it didn't actually get dimmer. Weird, she chose not to wear the headband for now, she'd ask for Ayame-nee's help later with sewing it into her sash around her waist. She walks out of the room and sees Hina-chan waiting at their seat, she smiles and flashes the headband at her. Hina-chan's almost a blur as she glomps the redhead. Naruko giggles at that, it seemed they were both more excited for the other than they were for themselves.

"Congratulations Naru-chan!" Naruko smiles brightly at the taller girl, before leaning forward and giving her a chaste peck on the lips.

"Thanks Hina-chan!"

They didn't notice how long they spent like that until Iruka-sensei and Mizuki stepped out of the room and looked down at the two girls laying on the floor. Mizuki clicked his teeth in disgust. Naruko looked up at him and glared. Iruka-sensei spoke up, or down at the moment. "Can you two return to your seats so we can give our last lecture before sending you off?" The two girls nod and return to their seats.

Iruka nods his head and looks out at all of them. He speaks, his voice filled with fondness and pride. "It was six years ago that I met you all as a new chunin instructor, assigned to teach you for your entire duration here in class 103 of the first academy. I've seen each and every one of you grow into admirable shinobi that I look forward to working alongside for years to come. You may have your differences but never forget, You're all ninjas of Konoha now and every person in this room is your comrade in arms. We all serve the great tree of Konoha to protect our people and our loved ones. That is what makes this village the greatest in the elemental nations. And I see it in each of your hearts that you possess this passion. This passion we have all come to know as the Will of Fire, passed down to us from the Shodaime Hokage himself. Now I ask you the same question I did six years ago when we first met. Why are you becoming a ninja? Think about this tonight and keep that in your heart when you meet your Jonin-sensei." He finishes his speech and smiles at his class. "I'm also pleased to announce that this years Rookie of the Year is. . . Hyuuga Hinata. Uchiha Sasuke is the runner up. Now then You're all dismissed, be sure to be here tomorrow at nine am to meet your new sensei." He pauses and adds as an after thought, "And if you ever want to talk, you know where to find me."

The classroom is quickly emptied and the two girls head outside to find Hitomi, Hanabi (who is currently in her second year at the academy), and the Ichiraku family waiting for them. The two girls are hugged by the two families and congratulations are passed all around. Naruko can't help but ask where Hiashi is.

Hitomi responds. "He's currently back at the compound organizing the celebration party." Hanabi pipes up after.

"Otou-sama got you lots of cinnamon buns Nee-chan!" Hinata smiles warmly at her sister and gives her a hug. After a few moments she breaks the hug and says to Naru-chan.

"Anything you'd like to do before we go celebrate?"

"No that's okay, The Ichirakus are going to be giving me a celebration dinner tomorrow, cause they knew I'd want to go to your party." Hinata smiles and takes the redheads hand in her own.

"Then let's go."

"Yeah!"

* * *

It had been a nice night, the atmosphere in the compound was generally pretty lighthearted. Naruko and Hinata were currently sitting alone in one of the compounds gardens. The two girls were side by side with their fingers interlaced. Naruko was leaning against Hinata, her head resting on the taller girls shoulder. After what seems like hours of silence Naruko speaks, her voice soft, almost a whisper.

"You saved me, you know that Hina-chan? And I'm not talking about my seventh birthday." Hinata turns her head to look at the other girl. She's a bit confused, if anything Naruko saved her. She protected her from bullies and being kidnapped, and she helped her learn to be confident.

"How so Naru-chan?"

"If I hadn't met you I'd still be alone, maybe even still being abused by the Matron. Hina-chan you taught me it was okay to love myself." Naruko says now looking right at Hinata with a warm smile.

"It's funny Naru-chan, you taught me the same thing." Naruko starts to respond but Hinata leans in and captures the smaller girls lips in a kiss. Naruko flinches in surprise, but quickly leans in as well, enjoying Hinata's soft lips against her own. She feels something poke against her lips she parts them without thinking about it, it slips in. Naruko breaks the kiss in surprise. Gasping for breath with her face red.

"W-Was that your tongue?" Hina-chan had never kissed her with tongue before. Naruko hadn't been expecting it.

"Yeah, is that a problem? Did you not like it?" Her tone is one of concern, she wouldn't have done it if she thought Naru-chan would dislike it.

"N-No it's not that I disliked it, I was just surprised. That's all."

"Then. . . Would you like to try it again?" Hinata asks wanting more but not wanting to push her girlfriend out of her comfort zone. After a moment Naru-chan nods her head and Hinata kisses her once more.

Naruko feels Hina-chan's tongue poking her lips again, this time she intentionally parts her lips for the taller girl. Hina-chan's tongue slips into her mouth again. The white eyed girls tongue pokes against her own exploring Naruko's mouth.

It had only seemed like moments but when they break apart they're both panting as though they ran a marathon. A string of saliva connects them. Naruko is the first to speak, breathlessly. "Wow." They had enjoyed kissing each other before but never had they kissed like that. They barely had words to describe how amazing it was.

"Yeah." Hinata was just as lost for words as Naru-chan. After a few moments pass Hinata speaks again. "What were you going to say?"

"What?"

"What were you going to say earlier, before I kissed you."

"Oh yeah, I was going to tell you I have a present for you. For saving me, for graduation, and just because I love you." That was enough to evoke a blush from Hina-chan. Naruko hands her a small wrapped box she had hidden on her. Hina-chan looks down at it and then back up at her. "Go ahead, open it."

The white eyed girl does so only to see it's actually two small sealing scrolls. She looks up at Naruko and uses chakra to open the one on the right. As she does Naruko speaks up. "Those are for saving me and graduating, I thought it fitting." It's a pair of fingerless gloves with metal plates, and arm guards, also made of metal. "The metal is chakra metal if you're curious." Hinata gasps at hearing that and activates her Byakugan. Chakra metal looks different then normal metal, sort of as if it's more empty, to the Byakugan. Indeed it does look different.

"Naru-chan, these must have cost you a fortune." She knows the other girl only gets a small stipend from the village. Naruko blushes and says.

"I've actually been saving up for them for three years now." Seeing Hina-chan's glare she says quickly. "No I wasn't skipping any meals to buy them don't worry." The white eyed girl stops glaring at that. "The other gift I made for you personally after we started dating."

Hinata turns her attention to the other scroll, and once more applies chakra to it. With a small poof of smoke, a small red and lavender heart pops out, Hinata realizes it's made of wood and Naruko painted it. "I know it's not as impressive, but I tried really hard to make sure it was shaped like a heart." Hinata thinks the other girl did a pretty good job, she can't see any carving marks at all. . . Wait, something is strange with this, this wood has chakra in it.

"Naruko how did you make this?"

Naruko was starting to worry the other girl didn't like it and vocalized that concern. "Do you not like it? I'm sorry Hina-chan I'll try bett-"

"No! Naru-chan I love it, I just got distracted by it that's all. This is amazing and don't you doubt that for a moment." Naruko smiles and nods her head. Then after a moment she answers the previous question.

"Oh! I took a regular block of wood, held it to my chest, and thought really hard about you, and that energy nature seems to have. It took a while but it worked."

"What energy?"

"Can you not see it with the Byakugan? 'Cause I can feel it when I sit really still. It's how I found you when the Kumo nin was trying to kidnap you. I just sat really still and thought really hard about you and nature." Hinata had no idea what energy it was, but that does explain two things she had been wondering, well kind of. It's probably the reason why Naru-chan's eyes changed back then. Hinata looks at the wooden heart again and realizes that energy is the chakra she saw in it. But why can she see it in this thing and not anywhere else? Staring at the heart she realizes some of Naru-chan's chakra is also in it. Maybe that's how?

Before Hinata can continue to ponder the situation with the heart she notices something odd with her Byakugan. Is that Mizuki with a scroll on his back? It has green stripes on either end along with thinner green stripes slightly further from the ends. Where had she seen that before? Maybe Naru-chan knew. "Hey Naru-chan do you know of any large scrolls in the village?"

"There's the one the Hokage keeps in his office."

"What does it look like?

"Besides being a large scroll? It also has some green stripes, I think."

While they were talking Mizuki had gotten out of the range of her Byakugan but she knows the rough direction he was heading. "I think I just saw Mizuki running off with it."

"Should we go after him?" Naruko didn't really care, if the Hokage can't protect something in his own office she doesn't think it's very important. But she is a ninja of Konoha now and she's pretty sure she's supposed to stop him.

"Do you want to?"

"Not particularly, well not for the scroll, if he really did steal it we get an excuse to beat him up." Suffice to say Naruko didn't easily forgive those who mocked her relationship with Hina-chan.

"Then lets go." Naruko wasn't the only one who didn't easily forgive mocking them for being gay. She also didn't forgive people who mocked Naru-chan for being Naru-chan, or people who mocked the smaller girl in general. Mizuki had once outright told Hinata that 'she could do better.' As her sensei, she was never allowed to harm him outside of instructor spars, which are pretty rare. Hinata decides to put on her new gifts figuring she might get to try them out sooner than expected.

The two girls quickly set out in the direction their instructor went but they weren't able bring him back into range of Hinata's Byakugan. She tells the other girl to stop. Naru-chan did so but asked in confusion. "Why are we stopping, I know you're not tired." It's true, the girls had trained together enough that they knew the others stamina well. Hinata stifles a blush at that thought.

"You said you were able to find me by sitting still and thinking hard on me and nature right?"

"Yeah."

"What if you tried focusing on Mizuki and nature?" The idea had merit but Naruko whined none the less.

"But I don't wanna think about Mizuki."

"Please Naru-chan, think about it this way, if this works we'll find out a little more about your powers." That's what the two called the strange abilities Naruko occasionally exhibited.

"Alright, but only because you're asking." With that Naru-chan sits in the lotus position and seemingly starts meditating. Hinata is watching her carefully to look for changes. They come quickly. Two of Naru-chan's bangs float upwards forming something that looks like ears. The girl also seems to suddenly be wearing red eyeliner. Naru-chan's eyes snap open to reveal they too have changed. Normally they are a deep purple with normal sclera, now they're entirely red, both the sclera and iris, with the pupils a darker shade of red. Naru-chan stands and speaks. "Alright I've found him."

The two girls take off with Naruko in the lead. She had nearly outpaced Hina-chan a few times and had to actively slow herself down so the other girl can keep up. They arrive in the forest on the west edge of the village. The two girls rocket into the clearing just in time to see Mizuki throw a huge Fuuma shuriken at Iruka-sensei.

No words need to be spoken between the two girls as Naruko rushes towards Mizuki while Hinata intercepts the weapon, blocking with her new arm-guards. The two men look in shock as the two newly minted genin burst into the clearing. Iruka can't really see the changes to Naruko clearly but Mizuki can. He steps back in fear as he sees the piercing red eyes of the girl locked on his own. Naruko continues rushing towards him and while he manages to put up a block he wasn't at all prepared for the strength of the girl, it's like she got way stronger in just a few hours! He's kicked back into a tree. "Tag in." is that Hinata's voice? He can't really tell with how disoriented he is. He tries to move and winces. He looks up and sees the demon girl moving out of the way. Just on time too as she dodges a Jyuken strike from behind that instead connects with his own shoulder. It immediately goes numb and he cries out in pain.

They move to knock him out but he manages to stop them with two sentences. "Wait! If you knock me out then you'll never learn why everyone in this village hates you Naruko!" The two girls look at each other and from behind they hear Iruka-sensei call out.

"No! You can't it's forbidden!" The two girls ignore him and Hinata says.

"We're listening."

Mizuki turns towards Hinata and says, "I wonder if you'll still like her after this." He lets out a weak chuckle. "12 years ago on October 10th a powerful demon attacked the village."

"We already know that, everyone already knows that." Naruko says kind of bored, she had stopped being curious about why she's hated a long time ago, but Hina-chan really wanted to know.

"Yes and the Yondaime defeated it. But he never killed the beast, oh no, instead he sealed it inside of a new born child. You are that child Naruko! You are the demon!"

"But you just said it's sealed inside me."

"Yes but it took possession of you from within the seal! Don't you get it you're a monster!" Why was she not shocked and heartbroken? Maybe the Hyuuga heiress is. Turning to her he finds she's deep in thought about something, good it looks like she is distracted, he quickly whips out a kunai and throws it at her. That fails though as Naruko had been watching him like a hawk and she caught the kunai long before it ever reached Hinata (which in reality was mere milliseconds). "Dammit why are you okay with this! Did you already know you're a monster?!"

"No not really, I just don't see how it matters, even if I am a monster I still act human. And I still love like a human, and hate like a human. And I do everything in between, so if I'm a monster I don't do a very good job of being monstrous."

While the other two were having a conversation Iruka was sitting there in a weird mix of shock and pride, for the same reason. The girls seem to be taking this well and that's a great trait for ninja, to be able to adapt. He also realized he should probably capture Mizuki now before he tries anything else. Iruka silently moves around the trio and then before anyone can blink he knocks the traitor out. Naruko looks at him in surprise but he just shrugs and she accepts it at that. She hadn't noticed that her eyes had turned purple again, of course she never really noticed that they turned red, by the time he saw her face.

Hinata for her part had been considering how much sense it made. Not the Naru-chan being a demon bit, that was nonsense, but her having the demon sealed inside her makes a lot of sense. It would explain the second chakra source of terrifying power. It would also explain what the power was that she used to kill the cloud nin. Though it leaves some mysteries, like what is the energy she feels all around them? Or why does she seem to take on rabbit like traits? From what she had seen from the few pictures taken of the beast it looked nothing like a rabbit. Why did Naru-chan feel strange compulsions towards certain things, like leaving her forehead uncovered, or Genjutsu? These are all questions she can't yet answer. She's snapped out of her thoughts as Naru-chan shakes her.

"Hey Hina-chan we have to go report to the Hokage about what happened tonight." It looked like Naru-chan wanted to ask her something, and was slightly pensive about it, but as Hinata laces her fingers through Naru-chan's the look disappears. Hinata realized at that moment what Naru-chan had wanted to ask and she gives her hand a soft squeeze. Naru-chan smiled at her and squeezed back in response.

Looking down at her arm-guards she sees a faint scratch in them and frowns. "Sorry Naru-chan looks like I already scratched them." The two girls were walking with Iruka-sensei towards the Hokage tower while he carried the traitor.

"That's okay, it just means they're doing their job and protecting you." They fall into a comfortable silence for a while before Iruka breaks it.

"So how did you two know to look for Mizuki? The order was only given to chunin and jonin."

"I happened to see him pass by the compound while I had my Byakugan active."

"Yeah Hina-chan thought there was something fishy with the scroll so we followed him."

"It's a good thing you did, he had me on the ropes and I probably would have been hit by that shuriken if you hadn't blocked it." Iruka was stronger than Mizuki by a wide margin. The average chunin instructor is required to be almost tokubetsu jonin in strength if not more so, Iruka was between tokubetsu jonin and full jonin in strength. He just rejected promotions because he wanted to teach, to make sure the next generation could protect themselves. Teaching assistants aren't under such strict limitations and can be anywhere from newly minted chunin to long time veterans, Mizuki was barely stronger than the former. But Mizuki had been his friend for years and he had let his attachment to the man stop him from fighting at full strength. The trio fell into silence again after Iruka finished speaking and made their way to the Hokage tower.

They arrived not long after, Mizuki was quickly collected by the Anbu stationed at the tower to be taken to T&I, while the three of them were escorted up to the Hokage's office. The old man greets them kindly, sort of like a nice grandfather, and asks them to explain what happened. Iruka goes first explaining how he was alerted about Mizuki's theft like the other chunin and went looking in the forest the two had played in when they were younger. He had found him and the two engaged in combat only to stop when the two girls arrived.

The girls took that as their cue to explain things from their perspective, how they had seen Mizuki by coincidence and followed after him in the direction they saw him heading. Hinata had taken the lead and when she left out the nature bit Naruko took that to mean she should too, so she did. From there the three of them explained what happened in the clearing and how Mizuki had spilled the secret concerning Naruko.

The aged kage speaks while stroking his beard. His tone sharper than it was earlier. "I see, and how do you feel about learning of this Naruko-chan?"

"It's Naruko, and I don't really care, if I was a demon I think I'd be the first person to know it and the people who care for me don't seem to care either way." She squeezes Hina-chan's hand. The white eyed girl squeezes back.

"I see and how do you feel about the villagers? For treating you so poorly?"

"I don't care about them." Well that's the sacrifice he made. He sacrificed her health and potential love for the villagers by letting them abuse her without repercussions. She wasn't wearing her forehead protector, that might be a bad sign.

"And how do you feel about the village, and me?" He had to know if she is going to become a loose cannon.

"I swore to protect it when I became a ninja, and I swore to obey you at the same time."

"So why are you not wearing your forehead protector then?"

"Oh I just wanted to sew the plate into my sash." Hiruzen doesn't make any visual or audible signs of it but he can feel the relief flood through him. Good despite all that has happened the girl is still loyal to the village.

"And what of you Hinata, what do you think about all this?"

"I had been suspicious of something like this ever since that night." She says putting emphasis on the word 'that'.

Hiruzen nods knowing she had seen Naruko's transformation closer than anyone else. And given that she just graduated as Rookie of the Year from Konoha's most competitive academy she was likely smart enough to have to figure out Naruko had some kind of relation to the demon.

"Alright then, Iruka be sure to turn in a written report by tomorrow afternoon, if there is nothing else you have to say or ask then you're dismissed. I'll see you tomorrow Iruka." After a few moments he takes a kinder tone, and tries to talk like he would to his grandson. "Oh and Naruko-chan, congratulations on graduating."

"It's Naruko but thanks anyways." With that the two girls walk out hand in hand.

* * *

The two girls were standing in front of the Hyuuga compound. Still holding hands. Looking at the redhead Hinata speaks. "I didn't get the chance to give this to you because of Mizuki, but I also got you a graduation present. Just let me run in and grab it for you."

Naruko smiles at her girlfriend and says, "Okay, I'll wait right here for you." Hina-chan nods and runs inside. A shiver runs up Naruko's spine. She turns and sees a red eyed crow staring at her. Something is off about it. It squawks at her and then flies away. She turns back to the entrance and sees Hina-chan running back to her with a box in hand. The girl holds it out for her, and she gently grabs it. It's about two and a half inches wide and seven inches long. She unwraps the box and removes the lid.

Inside are two six inch long senbon. They each had a little symbol tied to the ends. One is a red Hyuuga clan crest and the other is a lavender swirl. "They're chakra metal, and are meant to tie up your hair and act as weapons."

Hinata loved that Naru-chan had long hair but she knew it would be a hazard in the field, so this was a good solution that didn't involve the girl having to cut her hair.

"They're beautiful, can you teach me how to put my hair up with them?" Hinata nods, she had planned to do that anyways.

"I'll stop by your apartment early tomorrow and help you with it."

"Okay. . . I love you Hina-chan."

"I love you too Naru-chan." The girls hugged one another and shared a quick kiss.

"I'll see you tomorrow Hina-chan, thank you for the gift."

"See you later Naru-chan."

* * *

The next morning Hiruzen found himself meeting with several of his elite jonin, they were here to become sensei. Normally only regular jonin are in the pool to become sensei, but that only applies to the second through tenth academy. For the first academy elite jonin are in the pool to become sensei and get first pick of the students. Most elite jonin also have stricter standards on what it takes to be ninja so most students from the first academy end up in the reserve forces. But those who pass their jonin-sensei's test will be allowed the privilege of being trained by the best of the village. The sensei also only take on one team during their career unless specifically requesting another. The team will be allowed to stay together until they all reach the rank of jonin.

Iruka was in the room with them along with the principal of the first academy, Yoshihido Aoba , and Kazuto, the man in charge of the ninja academies. They were there to advise the jonin on who would fit well together on a team. Some of it was unnecessary, for example it was already a foregone conclusion that they would be creating another generation of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio and they did not need the instructors to tell them that they compliment each other.

After having read their files two jonin in particular were arguing over who would get a certain girl.

"I'm telling you, Kakashi, I should have her because I can take her Genjutsu much farther than you ever could."

"And I'm telling you, Kurenai, she has no talent in it and it would be better if I train her in Ninjutsu. She has huge reserves and would make a great Ninjutsu specialist."

Hiruzen can't recall ever hearing elite jonin argue like this over the dead last of a graduating class. He turns to Iruka and asks. "You were the girls sensei, what do you think."

"Naruko might not have talent in Genjutsu but she has a real passion for it, and I think we should nurture that. More than anything though I think she needs to be put on the same team as Hyuuga Hinata."

"And why is that?" It was Asuma speaking this time.

"I saw it last night when they helped me apprehend Mizuki," The jonin had all been informed about what happened the previous night, "The two girls already have impeccable teamwork and would require a lot less work to make a fully functioning team. They barely even need to verbalize what they're doing for the other to react."

That had been enough to convince them, the two girls would be put on a team together, so then who should their third member be? That was the question echoing through the minds of the people in the room.

"We could do the traditional team of the top two students with the dead last." It was Yoshihido who spoke. That team composition typically fails horribly. In the best cases the teams are horribly out of balance and ultimately fall apart. And in the worst cases Konoha is left with the Sannin.

Hiruzen speaks, "What other options are there?"

Kazuto responds looking down at the files of the remaining graduates who hadn't been put in teams yet. "The only students left are Aburame Shino, Haruno Sakura, Inuzuka Kiba, and Uchiha Sasuke."

Iruka speaks again. "Sasuke is the only one who will work. Shino and his insects are afraid of Naruko as is Kiba's ninken Akamaru. Not only that but the two girls can't stand Kiba because he constantly mocks Naruko."

"What of Sakura then?" Kakashi was the one asking this time.

"She despises the other two, and Hinata seems to hate her just as much."

Kurenai spoke next. "So why does Sasuke work?"

"He doesn't care about them, but they don't annoy him and they're strong. He likes strength and will be happy he's not being held back by weaklings. They are neutral to him and don't seem to mind him. They just don't like his fans."

Hiruzen nods and says. "Alright then we'll pair those three as a team." He didn't really want to create another top bottom team, the nickname for the team format, but this one seems to actually mesh so maybe it would work. "The last three will be put together as the last team."

Kakashi turns to the Hokage, "So who is getting Naruko?"

* * *

A/N Another day another chapter. So what'd you all think? Personally I had a lot of fun writing this one so I hope you all enjoyed reading it just as much. I had been briefly tempted to make Naruko fail the genin exam but ultimately saw no reason for it since I don't intend on making her abuse the shadow clone jutsu. There was some fluff, and not to much drama. This is still my first fic so I'm not to sure how well I'm doing on the romance department but I hope you guys enjoyed it. Anything you'd like to see in the future? Do you hate me for leaving you on a cliff hanger? Do you like that Hinata literally and figuratively wears the pants in their relationship?

Jutsu list:

Nise no Kankaku: Hyaku Saku Hana - False Senses: one hundred blooming flowers

-CM 10/28/2018


	5. Pass or Fail Test to Become Ninja

As promised Hina-chan had arrived at her house early that morning. Early enough that Naruko hadn't actually had time to brush out her bed head. Hina-chan came and sat down on Naruko's bed, and then gestured to the ground in front of her. Naruko nods and takes a seat on the ground, her head resting against Hina-chan's thighs. The taller girl gently pulls up Naruko's red locks, and grabs the brush she gave the redhead so long ago. She notes the similarity in the bangs sticking up to the ones she saw last night.

That's enough to get her thinking. Does the other girl channel the strange energy in her sleep? If the only real requirement is she sits still and thinks about nature, then do dreams of nature work as well?

She puts those thoughts aside as she starts to brush the girls hair. It's so soft, she knows Naru-chan only bothers to take care of it because she likes it and that always makes her heart flutter. Honestly Naru-chan is just so cute sometimes, more like all the time, and her blushes, rare as they are, are just the most adorable thing in the world. They always make it so Hinata wants to just cuddle her girlfriend for hours. Though she also wanted to do that when the older girl won her spars, or would excitedly point at something new, or would play with her little sister, or when she looked at her with those deep purple eyes that just seemed to sparkle and then flashed her with that bright smile that's only for her. She had it bad.

Hina-chan had stopped brushing for some reason, so Naruko tilts her head back until she's staring right into Hina-chan's white eyes. That seemed to be enough to snap the other girl out of it so Naruko brings her head back down. Still Naruko was curious, "What'cha thinkin' about?"

"You, and how much I love you." Naruko leans back at that, a content smile on her face. It felt good to have someone who would shower her with love when the rest of the world seems to want to consume her in the hate. She couldn't have asked for a better girlfriend, of course she didn't ask to begin with, but she's not complaining. If Hina-chan hadn't taken the initiative back then it would have taken Naruko forever to realize her own feelings. She always has been bad with that stuff.

"You know I just realized the villagers won't be allowed to hurt me anymore."

Hinata practically growls, though her brushing remains gentle. She'd never take her frustration out on the other girl. "They never should have been allowed to hurt you in the first place. . . Why did you never try and leave the village?"

"By the time I realized, or rather you made me aware, what they'd been doing was wrong I already had reasons to stay. I would rather stay in the village with you then leave by myself, even if it means the villagers would abuse me."

"Even knowing our leader sacrificed you for a supposed greater good?" Hinata had figured that out when she realized Anbu were always assigned to watch Naru-chan, but they would always consistently wait to help her until after injury. According to Naru-chan one time she heard them say not to intervene until she had already been injured a bit, Naru-chan had assumed they didn't like her. Hinata knew better, the Anbu were nothing if not good at keeping their emotions out of work, they would protect any other citizen with brutal efficiency, they seemed to avoid protecting Naruko with that same brutal efficiency. Hinata had made the truth of it clear to Naru-chan for her own safety.

"I can't forgive him for sacrificing me without my permission or my parents." She had no idea who her parents were, and didn't care that much, but she did know that whenever she asked the Hokage about her parents he would get a guilty look across his face and then deflect the question. She figured it's because they didn't want her to be treated like this and he knew that but did it anyways. She wondered if he had them killed for going against the Hokage.

The two girls only knew two things about Naruko's parents, the first was that her mother was named Kushina. They had figured that out after so many people had called Naruko by the woman's name after seeing her for the first time. The other was that one of her parents was an Uzumaki. The only orphans that had last names in the village were those whose parents were publicly known, the ones who were unknown just never received a last name. So the fact that Naruko's last name is Uzumaki means one of her parents had to be a member of the extinct clan of red heads (A trait that only furthered their suspicions).

It's why Hinata got Naru-chan the Uzumaki swirl on a lot of her gifts. She wanted the other girl to feel like she had a real connection to her family. Naru-chan may claim she doesn't care about her family that much, but she knows that the redhead appreciates what Hinata was doing for her.

"There all done with your hair, now where did you put the senbon?" Naruko gestures to her nightstand. The senbon were still in their box but the lid was open for viewing. Hina-chan reached over and grabbed both.

Hinata twists the other girls hair up into a twisted pony tail, then coils the hair to make it a roll, leaving a space between the hair and her head. She pinches the roll and tucks the end of the redheads hair into the space. Afterwords Hinata inserts the senbon at the top right of the roll pausing and then speaking at this point. "Stay still now, I don't want you to get hurt."

"Okay." With that Hinata continues and carefully brings the senbon forward until the tip is pressing against Naru-chan's scalp. Then slowly and gently she brings it down until the direction of the senbon is reserved. Then she pushes through the rest of the roll of hair. She gently releases it and smiles as the hair is held in place. She repeats the process with the second senbon only this time it's at the top left. The two senbon create a cross, also known as a saltire, holding the redheads long hair in place. The roll of hair is tightly secured above her shoulders and only bounces, never coming free. Hinata nods seeing that the senbon worked as intended.

Naruko feeling Hina-chan finish with her hair stands and turns towards the other girl. "Thanks a lot for helping me out Hina-chan." Naruko had only manage to learn so much from that but she had learned how to make the roll, and with some practice she can get it down.

"So ready to go visit Ayame for your sash?" Naruko shakes her head no.

"I've gotta get dressed first Hina-chan."

Hinata hadn't been thinking about it but now that she's looking she realizes her girlfriend was only wearing a loose t-shirt, and short pajama shorts. Hinata can't help but look at her girlfriends thighs and nod appreciatively. The other girl trained her legs a lot and it showed. Not to say the other parts are bad, Naru-chan has amazing abs too and a generally great body. Hinata always felt she was in for a treat when Naru-chan wore a crop top while training on weekends together.

Hinata shakes herself from those thoughts and says "I'll let you change then." With that she steps out of the room. Hinata would love to see her girlfriend naked, she had fantasized about that image more than a few times, but she didn't want to push the girl. The other girl probably would be embarrassed but would say she doesn't mind. It was something Hinata had realized a few months into their relationship. Naru-chan didn't understand pacing, nor did she know how to properly express when something makes her uncomfortable, so it was up to Hinata to watch for the redheads reactions and try not push her out of her comfort zone. She loved the redhead and couldn't bring herself to abuse the redheads trust and naivety.

Naruko stepped out a few minutes later, in her usual ensemble only with a spare sash on at the moment, this one is red. She'd switch it out once she got the black one with her forehead protector from Ayame-nee. She quickly heads into the kitchen and gets them both a quick breakfast. Naruko makes a few omelets and gets out some rice and chicken she made the night before. She took some time to make Hina-chan a few pieces of cinnamon toast, not having the time or skill yet to make the cinnamon rolls her girlfriend loves. The two girls eat the breakfast the redhead prepared and then set out for the Ichiraku house.

They arrive a few minutes later. With a few quick raps on the door they stand and wait. It only takes a few seconds for the door to fly open and for Naruko to be scooped up into a hug by the civilian girl.

"I said it yesterday and I'll say it again, I'm so proud of you!" She had come so far from the starving and almost emotionally dead little girl. While she still lacked common sense to a concerning degree, the girl had truly flourished in the past few years.

Naruko was blushing and trying to break free, which is surprisingly hard to do without hurting the older girl. It's her own fault, she had chosen to leave her weights in storage seals today, just in case she needed them off for something, like if for example her sensei gave them a surprise test or something. If she had been wearing them the other girl wouldn't have been able to scoop her off the ground though.

Hinata watches amused, her mother did the same thing to Naru-chan a lot and unlike Ayame she was strong enough to do so even with the girls weights on. Naru-chan only hated it because she thinks it makes people think she needs protecting. Hinata still hadn't gotten it through to Naruko that it's okay for others to protect her just as she protects them. She had only grudgingly accept Hinata because she didn't want to insult the white eyed girl and her own effort to grow strong. She can also freely admit that Hinata is the better fighter of the two, even if the red head is the faster and physically stronger one.

Ayame finally lets Naruko go and gives her the finished sash. "Come on in, I'll help tie it around you." Naruko nods and is quickly shuffled inside by Ayame. She unties the red sash she had brought from the house and ties the black sash, the sashes are also known as Obi, around her waist. Naruko heads back out and asks Hinata. "So how do I look?"

"Like a real ninja." Naruko smiles and nods.

"Great! Ready to head to the academy?" Hina-chan nods and Naruko turns towards Ayame-nee, "I'll talk to you tonight Nee-chan" The civilian waves the two kunoichi off.

* * *

They arrived at the academy at ten til nine. Most of the other students had already arrived by then. The only two who seemed to be missing were Sakura and Ino. The two girls look around and spot four open seats. Two are right next to each other while the others are separated. They go for the two seats next to each other, they always tried to sit together (Normally they arrived earlier so it wasn't an issue). The only thing is the seats are also next to Sasuke and it's going to be annoying in a few minutes. Naruko takes the seat next to the Uchiha while Hina-chan takes the edge seat.

The two girls are proven right as their last two class mates come storming into the classroom. "Ha I was first! Take that Ino pig!" Naruko never could understand why Sakura called Ino a pig, the girl looked fairly normal, and Naruko had never heard her oink.

"Yeah right Forehead my foot was 1 centimeter ahead of yours so I was first!" Likewise Naruko never got the whole business about Sakura's forehead, it really did look pretty normal. She still thought it was a shame the two girls threw away their friendship. But maybe it was never really a friendship if it was thrown away so easily.

Naruko zones out for a bit only to be brought back to see Sakura standing beside her. "Move Naruko-baka! You're in my seat!" The pink haired girl moves to throw the redhead out of her seat but before her hand can even reach Naruko it's caught in a vice grip by Hina-chan.

"You wouldn't be trying to throw my girlfriend out of her seat, next to me, when we got here first would you? Sakura-san." Sakura gulps and shakes her head no. She may be the rank two kunoichi in class but she knew how scary Hinata can be when people were insulting or harming Naruko, outside of spars. Hinata smiles and says, "Good then I hope you don't mind taking one of the empty seats." Sakura nods her head and retreats.

Sasuke may not care about the girls, but the fact that they just shielded him from the fan girls is enough to earn his silent thanks. Oh how he despises the fan girls. He would have had no problem if they truly liked him. But he wasn't stupid and the fact that they all seemed to take an interest when he became a vulnerable orphan, and received a large inheritance, had been sending alarm bells through his head for years. If he had to guess the only one that might really have an interest in him, that doesn't stem from his heritage, is Ino. And he's fairly certain that is more of a game to her then anything else. The girl may be weak but she was deceptively smart, and painfully good at gathering info and dispersing false info.

Iruka walks into the room with a clipboard in hand. Most of the students quiet down seeing him. He nods glad to see the kids are taking things seriously. "There's not much in the way of formalities. We have thirty students and ten teams. You'll be paired in teams of three genin and one jonin. But you all already know that. I'll be starting with team one and working up. . ." He starts to call names and Naruko only really listens for her name or Hina-chan's. She perks up when he gets to the seventh team. "Team 7 will be Hyuuga Hinata. . ." He pauses and Naruko crosses her fingers. "Uchiha Sasuke. . ." Naruko is crossing her fingers tighter praying she'll be on Hina-chan's team, "And Uzumaki Naruko." Three things happen all at once. Naruko and Hinata cheer and give each other quick hugs. Sasuke lets out a sigh of relief at both not being paired with a fan girl and having the two strongest girls in class. He knows Naruko may be ranked at the bottom but he had fought her enough times to know as a ninja she is far more capable then her scores let on. She easily takes the third spot for strongest in the class behind Hinata and himself.

The last thing to happen is the cries of outrage from the fan girls at not getting the Uchiha and for him to be paired with Naruko of all people. They were worried his sheer amazingness might turn her straight and make her a rival. They were delusional but no one saw the need to correct them, it's kind of fun to let them convince themselves the impossible is going to happen.

Iruka continues ignoring the outrage. "Team 8 will be Inuzuka Kiba, Haruno Sakura, and Aburame Shino." Sakura cries out.

"You take me away from Sasuke-kun and stick me with dog boy and the creep?!" Naruko winces for Shino. He may not talk but he was really very nice, and Naruko was coming from a perspective where he actively avoids her. If she thought he was nice then there is no reason everyone else can't.

"Each team was carefully considered for maximum efficiency and I assure your team is as it should be." He continues naming three of the weirdly bland kids who seriously never managed to stop being bland for team 9 "Team 10 will be Yamanaka Ino, Akimichi Choji, and Nara Shikamaru." He pauses for a moment before continuing, "Your jonin-sensei will be here in an hour to pick you up. I encourage you in the meantime to use this opportunity to bond with your new teammates. You'll be together for most of your career, so you might as well get along."

Iruka-sensei walks out of the room and Naruko stands along with Hina-chan. She turns to Sasuke and says. "Well want to come eat lunch with us?" Sasuke is about to reject but Hinata cuts in.

"If nothing else eating with us will protect you from your fans." That's enough for the boy and he nods. The three walk out of the room even as Sakura claims they are stealing her Sasuke-kun.

Hinata had to resist pouting. She had helped Naru-chan convince Sasuke because that's what her girlfriend wanted, but the white eyed girl would have preferred to have lunch with just Naru-chan. It's not like she dislike Sasuke, not since he lost his crush on her girl, but she wants to act lovey-dovey with her girlfriend and he kind of interrupts that. They move outside and sit around a large tree.

"So Sasuke, are you mad Hina-chan stole Rookie of the Year from you?"

"Naru-chan that's rude!" Hinata says in a scolding tone.

Sasuke didn't really care about the title, the girl had been putting in just as much work as him so it's not like she stole it over night, they had been almost exactly tied at the time of the exam. "Hn."

"You know I think that's the only thing I've heard you say in years."

"Naruko!" Uh-oh looks like she actually made Hina-chan mad.

"It's alright, it's kind of refreshing." He meant it too, everyone else in the class would be trying to suck up to him right now. Or boldly claiming they'd kick his ass. Most couldn't backup that claim making the fights boring and wortheless. These two were treating him normally. It felt kind of nice.

"See Hina-chan it's fine."

"Naru-chan it's fine to be blunt, it's part of what I love about you, but there is no reason to bring up painful memories." Naruko nods conceding the point.

"Sorry Sasuke didn't think about that." These two are really different when they are not with the rest of the class, they're much more expressive and open. And talkative. Hinata sees the look on his face and laughs.

"What did you think we only spend our time together plotting how to give Kiba a beating in the sparring ring?" Sasuke had to acknowledge that, it would make sense that the girls would normally just well act, well, normal.

"So do you still like tomatoes? Cause it looks like my gardens going to get a big harvest this year and I'll probably have more than I can eat." That's not true if Naruko really put her mind to it she could eat enough to clean out her whole apartment, but that's not the goal.

"I didn't know you garden. And yeah I still like tomatoes."

"Yeah I've turned my whole balcony into a garden," And most of the apartment complex now that she thinks about it, no one else was using it so why not? She saves a ton of money on food every year thanks to that. It's part of the reason she was able to buy Hina-chan the arm guards and plated gloves. "So if you want any just stop by sometime and I'll give you some." Sasuke nods, not really planning on it, having more important things to do, like training, or thinking up ways to kill Itachi, but he might stop by for fresh tomatoes sometimes if he gets in the mood and doesn't want to go shopping.

"Naru-chan are you inviting a boy to your apartment when I, your girlfriend, am right here?" Hinata's tone is one of mock hurt.

Naruko doesn't pick up on it. "I'm sorry Hina-chan I hadn't thought about that, you know I only have eyes for you. Sorry Sasuke deals off."

Wow she's whipped, at least that's what Sasuke thought. Hinata laughs and says, "It's alright Naru-chan I was only kidding. Guess we still need to work on your ability to recognize what different tones of voice mean."

"Hey I can pick up on most of them, like anger, sadness or happiness. Oh and the one where you want to kiss me more! I'm just not to good with sarcasm, that's what that was right? Some form of sarcasm?" Hinata nods, blushing a bit at the mention of the kissing one. When had Naru-chan learned what she sounded like when she was. . . Getting into it.

"So does that mean the offer for the tomatoes still stands?" The two girls look at each other and laugh at his question.

"Sure Sasuke I don't mind and Naru-chan doesn't mind." She says that with a certain look in her eye. One that said "If you make moves on my girlfriend I will end you." He nods his head and she smiles. Yep Hinata didn't just scare his fan girls, she deserved that rank one spot.

"Hinata, why did you become a ninja?" He had been thinking about Iruka's speech yesterday.

"To lead the clan and to protect Naruko. She is the main source of my strength and my drive." Her tone was surprisingly serious

"And what about you Naruko?"

"Originally it was just because Hina-chan was going to be a ninja. Then it was because I wanted to protect myself and Hina-chan. What about you Sasuke? Why did you become a ninja?"

"Originally it was to be like that man." Both girls know he's talking about his older brother. "Now it's so I can get my revenge."

"Then we'll help you with it." The red head says smiling at him.

"What?"

Hinata speaks this time. "We're teammates now, Naru-chan and I have gotten revenge in many forms against those who hurt her, so I don't see a problem with helping you do the same." Naru-chan nods agreeing with the younger girl.

Sasuke doesn't respond, he had never considered help. If nothing else Hinata had gotten stronger than him with the aid of a friend and a drive for revenge (and protection, but that's less important to him), at least that what it seemed like to him. So maybe it has some merit. Well he has something to think on now.

The three eat their lunches in relative silence, with the occasional chatter between the two girls. They soon finish and head back inside to wait out the last five minutes for their new sensei to arrive. The three sit together again, not seeing a point in separating, not that Naruko and Hinata would have anyways.

Five minutes later 7 jonin walk into the room and call for teams 1-6 and team 9. Naruko finds it amusing that all the bland kids got taken out first. It's about 10 minutes after that another three jonin walk in. The first is a bearded man with a cigarette in his mouth. He seems to have a lazy attitude about him and had somewhat of a resemblance to the Hokage, though his skin was more olive than the old man. He wore the standard jonin vest and had two trench knives strapped to each leg. He wore the black variant of the ninja uniform underneath. He also had a sash with the kanji for fire around his hips.

Just behind him was a stern looking man with one eye. He had his forehead protector covering the other. He had gravity defying silver hair and pale skin, from what little he showed. He also wore the standard jonin vest but had the Navy blue variant of the ninja uniform. Lastly he wore a mask that when combined with his forehead protector covered about 75% of his face. Naruko realizes he's the man who had been giving her a clock on her birthday every year since she was five. Naruko wondered just why he bothered to give her presents, he never did anything else in her life and the only conversation she ever had with the man was about how it's important to always try and be on time or early if possible.

Lastly a woman with long black hair and crimson red eyes walked in. They almost reminded Hinata of Naru-chan's nature transformation, that's what she calls it for lack of a better name. But they weren't quite the same. The woman had pale skin and didn't seem to be carrying any weapons, but she likely had some hidden on her. She wore an odd dress that looked to be made of bandages with thorny vines patterned on them, but upon closer inspection the bandages were something different. Underneath she could see a small amount of mesh and cloth that seemed to also work as added clothes, acting as a sleeve for the dress, much like Naru-chan's kimono, the other name for Naru-chan's dress, now that she thinks about it.

"You three are the lucky ones." It was the tan man who spoke up.

"Or the unlucky ones depending on how you look at it." It was the woman who spoke this time.

"We're the three elite jonin who signed up to be sensei this year." This time it was the one eyed man.

The tan man speaks again, "Which means you nine, as the only ones left, get us as your sensei. And all the benefits that come with." Of course he wouldn't mention that they also are going to test them and it would be harder than a regular jonin would give. "Now then Team 10 you're with me." He walks out of the room, they would have to follow on their own. The trio of childhood friends quickly exit the room in a hurry after him. Well Ino does while dragging Shikamaru who doesn't seem to care.

The man with a spike of silver hair speaks next, "Team 8 you're with me, you have five minutes to get to the roof, if you're late by a single second you'll all be punished." The man disappears in a poof of smoke. The team scrambles after the man not eager to find out their punishment for being late.

The woman speaks to the three remaining kids. "Well I guess we can stay right here, I'm going to be the sensei of Team 7. So why don't you introduce yourselves to me. Just state what you like and dislike, along with your hopes for the future. I don't need a report on your skills, I'll be testing that later. Oh and I guess you should state your name, just because I feel like it." She also had already read the report on the three of them so she wasn't ignorant, it's why she campaigned for them to begin with. She gestured to Sasuke to begin, figuring she'd start from left to right.

"I'm Uchiha Sasuke. I like tomatoes, and I dislike most other things, I will kill a certain man and restore my clan." It was simple, that's about it. He had something he will do, and he couldn't rest until he did so. The woman gestures to the redhead sitting in the middle.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruko and I love Hina-chan and ramen, I also like gardening and rabbits." She had never understood the fondness for rabbits but she just couldn't help it. "I don't like people who hurt me, or mock my relationship with Hina-chan. I want to be able to protect Hina-chan and one day make her my wife!" Hinata speaks up after that.

"I'm not going to be your wife, you're going to be mine."

"What's the difference?"

"You'll marry into my family and not the other way around."

"But what if I want to restart the Uzumaki clan?"

"We're both girls, we can't have kids together. I know you know that, and do you really care about restarting the clan?"

"Not really, but I still don't get why you can't be my wife while I'm yours."

"Think about it this way, when we get married someday I'm going to fill the role a husband would traditionally fulfill."

"Do you want me to be a housewife? Or is this a subtle way to try and tell me you wish you were born a man?"

"You're cooking is great and while I think I would love to always have you around the house, you would go stir crazy if you had to be in the house most the day. I'm going to make you my wife and I'll fulfill the role expected of a husband but you're already weird so you can be my weird wife. And no I'm perfectly happy being a woman." Naruko nods accepting that answer.

"You do realize you're just as weird as me if not more so, so I think we'd have a weird marriage too."

The other two members of the team are just silently watching the two girls go back and fourth and the red eyed woman begins to understand how their relationship works. She coughs politely to get the girls to stop.

"Oh right, well I'm Hyuuga Hinata and I like my family, flower pressing and flower arrangement, along cinnamon buns. I love Naru-chan the most. I don't like people who mock Naru-chan or our relationship, nor do I like my families caged bird seal. I'm going to be head of the Hyuuga clan and as stated earlier I'm going to take Naru-chan as my wife."

The jonin speaks up, "I don't really mind but aren't you two a little young to be thinking about marriage?"

"Not really, according to Kaa-chan she had thought about marrying Otou-sama only a month into dating, even if it actually took them five years to get married. Just because we're thinking about it and talk to each other about it doesn't mean we're going to go turn in the form right this instant." Naruko nods and adds.

"Not to mention we are legally adults now and could get married if we so chose, and we love each other. So is it really that weird to think about it?"

The older woman speaks up. "No I guess not when you put it like that, I was really more curious to see how you'd defend yourselves. Most young couples in love simply say they will never break up and that it's meant to be."

Sasuke finally speaks again, bored by the conversation about his teammates relationship, and says. "Sensei you never introduced yourself to us."

"Oh I'm aware I was just waiting to see if any of you would ask. I'm Yuuhi Kurenai, I'm an elite jonin. I enjoy spending time with my friends and practicing Genjutsu." Naruko's eyes light up hearing that. Good that's the kind of reaction she wanted to see, she wouldn't have bothered to mentioning her skill in the art otherwise. "I dislike shinobi who look down on women and homophobes."

"Oh sensei are you gay too?" It was Hinata who spoke up here.

"No but one my closest friends is dating my best friend and both are women. Fortunately it's not an issue in most shinobi villages and in some capitals, but outside the village you two will find a lot more resistance to your relationship, as do most shinobi and gay people unfortunately." Having answered the question she continues. "I've already accomplished my goal in becoming an elite jonin so my current hope for the future is to turn you three into formidable ninja and an unstoppable team."

Sasuke speaks next. "It never really got explained in the academy. What exactly are the requirements to becoming an elite jonin?"

"An elite jonin must have at least jonin level proficiency in six ninja arts, three of which must be the three core ninja arts. Beyond all that they must also have an S-rank mastery in at least one ninja art of their choosing. Generally an elite jonin ranges in strength from high A-rank to anywhere in the S-ranks."

A certain redhead speaks next. "So what are you S-ranked in? And what about your other three ninja arts?"

Kurenai chuckles and says, "That's something I'm not going to tell you yet. Because you three, are not really genin yet."

"So there is some kind of extra test then?"

"Exactly right Hinata, I'm going to test you three tomorrow to see if you are worthy of being trained by me. If you fail you three will be sent to the reserves and will be forever locked out of becoming jonin, and will only be allowed to reach the rank of chunin through field promotion. And if you really fail I might just kick you out of the program." She wouldn't the kids were way too strong to be set loose, no at worst they'd be sent to the reserves. Looking at their faces she can see her scare tactic isn't really working.

"When will we be meeting tomorrow?" The raven haired boy asks.

"Be at training ground 14 at 8am if any of you are late by even a minute you will all fail. Konoha does not need ninja who are incapable of arriving on time. I'd recommend you don't eat tomorrow, wouldn't want you to throw up." And with that the woman was gone.

"We're eating right?" Hinata didn't really need to ask but she would anyways, if only for her males teammates sake

"Oh yeah for sure." Naruko had starved once and she never wanted to do anything resembling it again. It's part of the reason she learned to cook. Not because she's apparently going to become Hinata's wife (she still doesn't see why the way they say it matters), but because after having had to eat trash at one point just to survive and going days without food as well, she would go out of her way to make sure she eats things that taste better regularly.

"Didn't Kurenai-sensei just tell us not to eat?"

"No she recommended it, she had intentionally been dropping hints that entire conversation about what to expect. Iruka did too." The white eyed girl had picked up on a few things.

"Like what?"

"She already told us her S-rank specialty is Genjutsu, by saying she likes practicing it in particular. Iruka had told us genin teams are always made of three genin and one jonin, and when Kurenai said we would all fail if one of us is late she reaffirmed that. Whatever it is we either all pass or all fail. She also stated her goal is to make us formidable ninja which implies she wants us to pass so she can train us."

"She also gave us ammo to distract her with."

"What do you mean Naru-chan?"

"She said she dislikes homophobes and sexists right? Well what if we have Sasuke just act like he's both. If we all pass or fail together then the test will require teamwork right? Not to mention she said she wants to make us stronger as a team than we would be individually" That's why she said unstoppable as a team and formidable alone. "So we'll likely be fighting her to some effect, she had intentionally left out most her skills so she can surprise us with them. So I figure if we have Sasuke bait out a negative reaction we could sneak attack her while she's distracted."

Sasuke speaks up now, understanding how they're thinking things through. "She also told us the training ground and then left before it's even noon. We could likely have tested today, it's not like we did anything strenuous so it's likely a chance for us to set up traps in the training ground." The two girls nod at his logic. Then they all smile, a plans coming together.

Kurenai was impressed, she hadn't moved from her spot, merely casting an invisibility Genjutsu to make it seem like she left quickly. The kids easily worked out a lot of what the conversation had hidden within. Of course she'd have to teach them to scan their surroundings first before talking about their plans, they have a Byakugan user right there and didn't even think to check, but that can be forgiven. They are still inexperienced genin, and haven't had time to learn that lesson yet. Hopefully she can drill it into their heads before they have to learn it the hard way.

If their showing tomorrow is even half as good as this though she's confident they'll pass with flying colors. She smiles as the three kids leave to go set their traps. She'd let them set them up without her spying. If only to positively reinforce the good thinking. If she knew where all of them were it might send the message that traps and preparation isn't useful.

Yes she was looking forward to this team, She definitely lucked out that the Hokage chose her over Kakashi.

* * *

The three genin had spent the entire afternoon covering the training ground in traps. They had Hinata sketch out a map of the training ground first and marked on the map the location of each trap. They then made copies of the finished map and would memorize it tonight. The sky was turning orange as the sun began to set.

"We're going to head to Ichiraku Ramen to celebrate graduating. If you want to come with us you can." Naruko says while looking at Sasuke.

"Maybe some other time."

The two girls nod not pushing for him to come. Hinata is fine with finally getting the chance to get some privacy with Naru-chan. She's going into withdrawal from not feeling her girlfriends lips on her own. As soon as Sasuke left Hinata whirled on Naru-chan and planted her lips on the other girls.

Naruko didn't even have time to question what brought the sudden kiss on before she felt the taller girl snake her arms around her waist and pull her closer. She blushes but stands on her toes to make things easier for the girl with indigo hair, and throws her arms around the pale neck of the heiress. She feels Hina-chan poking at her lips and she parts her own, now much more used to what that means. The two remain lip locked like that for what feels like ages before finally breaking apart. "What brought that on?"

"Do I need a reason to kiss you?"

"No not really, but you typically build it up more." Hinata tended to add more drama to the kisses, leaning in first and feeling the other girls breath on her lips as they would near each other, she liked to think it made it more romantic. But she couldn't help it this time, she hadn't had even a peck all day.

"You ready to head out?"

"Almost." Naruko stands on her toes again and kisses Hina-chan one more time, it's short and sweet. "I love ramen but personally I like your lips better when they taste like cinnamon." She wanted to get one last taste before they eat perfection in food form. She grins seeing Hina-chan blush. She doesn't do it nearly as often anymore and in this context Naruko loved it. "Now we can go."

With that the two girls link hands and leave the training field making their way towards the ramen stand. Naru-chan is humming happily as she gently swings their hands back and forth. Hinata can't help but smile. She loved seeing the girl happy and nothing seemed to make her happier than going to Ichiraku Ramen with Hinata.

Her thoughts turn sour as she thinks about the ramen stand. Not because the owners were at fault. Not really. The villagers at large knew they helped Naru-chan and went out of their way to make sure the stand got as little business as possible. They only managed to get by as a result of her father having learned what was going on. He gave her a small fund to always finance her girlfriends meals their. So every time they went they almost always cleared out their stock. Leaving just enough to ensure they can serve whatever other customers might show up, which is typically not many. Everyone benefited really. Naru-chan got to have a buffet every now and then. The Ichiraku got to stay in business without compromising their values. Hinata got to make sure her girlfriend was fed and got to see her adorable look of happiness. And her father got to protect old friends without making it seem like charity and make her happy.

The elders of the clan didn't really care about the expenditures on the heiress as she had proven her ability, some had even claimed her a prodigy on the level of Uchiha Itachi or Hatake Kakashi. Hinata knew she was no prodigy, she just had a drive and couldn't allow herself to be weak, or Naru-chan would be the one to suffer.

They arrived at the stand about twenty minutes later, having chosen to walk at a leisurely pace. Upon lifting the flaps and stepping in they are immediately greeted by the words. "Tou-chan, Naruko and Hinata are here!"

A laugh from inside calls them back followed by the words. "One of everything comin' up, along with two extra bowls of miso ramen!" They had promised Naruko a feast for graduating and that's what they were going to give her. The red heads eyes were practically sparkling in excitement at the mention of all the delicious food she was going to get. The three girls chat about their day for a few minutes before Teuchi-ojisan calls out "Order up!" Ayame-nee steps into the stands small kitchen, which is hidden behind another wall so it's out of view of customers, they've got to protect their secret techniques, and she comes out with two steaming bowls of ramen, she sets one down in front of each girl. Before heading back in and coming back with another two bowls, placing both in front of Naruko.

The two girls say "Itadakimasu." and begin to eat. Well Hinata eats, Naru-chan inhales the food. But that's why they're here. While they eating Ayame asks.

"So how did your team assignments go?"

"I got paired with Hina-chan!"

"Naru-chan, chew and swallow first then answer."

The red head does so this time before responding. "My bad Hina-chan. Oh and Nee-chan our third teammate is Uchiha Sasuke?"

Ayame winces and asks, "I've seen his fan girls, he's gotta be quite the brat right?" She couldn't see a boy that has a whole posse of girls after him being fun to work with.

"He's actually not that bad, just a bit reclusive." The white eyed girl meant it, he wasn't an awful teammate to have. There were worse options.

"Oh well that's good, I'm glad you didn't get anyone you dislike."

"Oh Nee-chan can you make something clear for me?"

"Maybe depends on what it is."

"How does it make a difference if I'm Hina-chan's wife or if she's mine?" Ayame looked at the white eyed girl and raised an eyebrow, getting the meaning of Hinata's words, curious as to why she would argue the semantics to Naruko when she knows the girl won't get it. Hinata shrugs.

"It means she wants to make it clear she's wearing the pants in the relationship."

"Well of course she's wearing pants, she doesn't like combat dresses."

"No you misunderstand, its a metaphor."

"Oh, well what does it mean?"

"You're a little to young for me to tell you that, ask again when you're sixteen."

"Oh come on Nee-chan it can't be that bad." Ayame smiles, it's really not, but it's fun to tease the girl like this. Not to mention she's pretty sure Hinata wants to be the one to explain the relationship dynamic. She wouldn't take that away from the white eyed girl.

Teuchi walks out with bowls of ramen in each hand and gives them to Naru-chan. "You wouldn't plan on marrying our Naruko without my permission would you?" He asks menacingly. Hinata shakes her head no and hurriedly answers.

"Of course not you would be the second person I ask." Naru-chan would obviously be the first. Hinata may not truly be afraid of the man, but he saw Naru-chan as his second daughter and was as protective as one might expect. And she didn't want to anger the man because she knew it would hurt the redhead if two of her favorite people were fighting. Teuchi nods his head in approval and returns to the kitchen, there was still more ramen to make.

After that the four fall into a comfortable conversation while the Ichiraku family continues to make Naruko ramen. The white eyed girl moves to pay as Naruko finally finishes her last bowl and Teuchi-ojisan shakes his head. "No this was our gift to you and Naruko. You don't owe us anything." Hina-chan looks like she wants to protest but is silenced as the man continues. "Don't worry, we didn't use any of our normal stock for this, we bought a separate stock for just today and just for her. We've been putting money away for this for a while now."

Hinata nods not willing to push harder, it would be disrespectful to Teuchi's generosity. She settles for giving a small bow and saying. "Thank you for taking care of her all these years."

"You have nothing to thank me for, I was just doing what any good cook would do when he sees a starving girl."

"No! You took it farther, you protected her when I was unable to, you gave her a shelter, and you made her feel like she has a family. For that you will always have our gratitude." Naruko nods and says.

"Yeah Ojisan! If not for you and Nee-chan then I would have starved to death. You gave me a chance to live my life." Naruko smiles at him and Ayame-nee. The man turns his back to them and says.

"Get out and go have enjoy the rest of your night, you brats." The girls do just that, knowing he didn't want to be seen getting emotional.

"Are you alright Tou-chan?" Ayame asks in concern, she had only seen her dad tear up like this a few times in her life. The first was when he got the news Minato-san and Kushina-san died. She had been five at the time so she only barely remembered them but they had always been kind to her. They also seemed to be long time friends and customers of her dad. The only other time was when her Kaa-chan died, but she had been crying herself she could only barely remember his tears.

His voice barely above a whisper he says. "Minato, Kushina, are you watching over her? She's come so far. Your little girl you were gonna love to death is growing up. God I wish you were here to give her the family she deserves. I should have never had to find her starving." That was it, he broke out into full blown tears. "Ayame. . . Close the shop, we're done today." He couldn't work like this.

"Okay Tou-chan, take it easy alright?"

"Alright."

* * *

The three genin had arrived at training ground 14 at 6 am. Naruko brought breakfast for all of them. It was simply a banana for each of them, a few oranges and apples. More leftover rice and chicken. Along with a Tomato for Sasuke, cinnamon toast for Hina-chan, and a few homemade dumplings for herself. They're not as good as ramen but they're her second favorite food and can be made healthier without ruining the taste. She tried adding strawberries to ramen once, it was a terrible mistake.

After eating breakfast make a plan, they had all memorized the map of traps as promised. While discussing Hinata was helping Naru-chan put her hair up again. Sasuke didn't question it as they didn't even slow down their conversation.

The plan was fairly simple, the girls would charge together against Kurenai-sensei and would likely be defeated in some facet. Sasuke would intentionally insult them, specifically being discriminatory. He would then boldly proclaim real ninja should learn to hide and then he would dash into the forest. If all goes according to plan Kurenai would chase after him seeing as the other two would be defeated. Then the girls will follow her into the forest using Hinata's Byakugan to track them. The two would sneak attack the woman when the time was right.

After the plan was complete they spent the rest of the time while waiting training together to get a better idea of the others strengths.

Of course all this would be assuming they'd be fighting Kurenai in some facet so who knows maybe they wouldn't be.

With a puff of smoke the red eyed woman appears. Seeing them all present she nods. "Good you all arrived early. I hadn't said it but this is something you should always try and keep in mind. If you aren't early then you're late."

"Now then as for your test, you will have three hours to attempt capture me." She holds up a glass ball. And drops it onto the ground, it shatters on impact. She then pulls out an identical ball. "As you can see these are extremely fragile, and I'm extremely clumsy. I have one more on my person. One of you will pass for each intact ball. Don't worry I won't intentionally break the balls to spite you, I'll try and protect them. But if you are reckless in fighting me then they will break. I'd recommend coming at me with the intent to kill. Begin."

The girls immediately begin the plan and charge the woman, with Naruko dashing forward and attempting to drop kick the raven haired woman. The woman simply side steps only to be met with a Jyuken strike aimed for her heart. She grabs Hinata's wrist and throws her into Naruko. Good these kids were at least taking this seriously. Naruko ducks underneath Hinata and dashes forward once more throwing a right hook at the taller woman. She moves to block the strike, but it was a feint as Naruko was really aiming to kick her in the side. Kurenai grabs Naruko's wrist while lifting her own leg high and blocking the smaller girls kick with her shin. She had to admit it stung a bit, but nothing she hasn't faced before.

Naruko grabs onto Kurenai's wrist seeing the opportunity to grapple her. Hinata having recovered rushes forward and aims a Jyuken strike at the hand holding Naruko's wrist, Byakugan blazing angrily. Kurenai twists it snapping the wrist and making the girl eat the Jyuken strike. Naruko cries out in pain. Hinata looks at her in anger.

"What? I told you to come at me with the intent to kill and you thought I wouldn't be willing to hurt you in return?" Hinata screams in rage and tries futilely to attack Kurenai. The woman throws the ball up and uses both hands to deflect Hinata's wild strikes. "You're too prone to anger, your concern for the demon blinds you. If you just cut your ties to her you could go much farther as a ninja." Hinata puts all her weight into a strike, only for Kurenai to easily sidestep the sloppy punch. She grabs Hinata by the back of her head and slams her into the ground face first. If the crunch is anything to go by she broke the girls nose. "The Jyuken requires the user to always keep their cool, it only works when you can calmly assess the body of the enemy and see what they are planning based on their chakra flow. You threw that away when you became enraged over that monster."

"God I can't believe I lost the Rookie of the Year spot to a weakling like you. I guess I shouldn't have expected anything better from a woman."

"I'd watch yourself Uchiha, I won't hesitate to break your jaw."

"Please like a weak whore like you could beat the might of the Uchiha. You'd be better off if you just spread your legs so I could get started on rebuilding the clan."

"Ah I see you wish to be castrated instead."

"What afraid of a strong man, to tell you how you should act? I know your friends have an aversion to cock but I guess you d-" He's interrupted as a pale leg finds itself embedded in his sternum. He rockets back into the forest coughing up blood in the process.

"You wanted to know my three extra skills? I'll show you them first hand." She bites her thumb and wipes it along the vines of one of her bandages. It's revealed to be a sealing scroll as a sword pops out. "I'm fairly well versed in the use of Kenjutsu, you'll see first hand when I gut you." She stalks into the forest after him.

"You okay Naru-chan?"

"Yeah, just a broken wrist, how about you?"

"She broke my nose. I think our plan worked a little to well."

"I hope she doesn't hurt Sasuke to badly."

"It will probably be fine." Naruko suddenly runs forward and holds out her uninjured hand above Hina-chan's head. The glass ball lands right in her palm but is perfectly intact.

"I'm going to seal this so we can keep it safe."

"Good idea." Naruko does so quickly and gently pats the scroll where it's sealed. She may not know how to make her own scrolls but she can at least use them. "All I can do is apply a healing salve to your wrist, it won't do much but it should ease the pain." Naruko nods and let's the other girl do so. In the mean time she sits in the lotus position, planning on using her nature transformation. She focuses her thoughts on Kurenai, and nature. When she opens her eyes next they're red.

"You're going all out then?"

"Yeah, lets go quickly and help Sasuke."

The two girls quickly head into the forest with Naruko in the lead, Hinata is scanning their surroundings constantly with her Byakugan. They find Kurenai just as she stabs her sword through the Uchiha's hand, pinning him to the ground.

"You're out of luck Uchiha, the moment you got stabbed by my sword it was game over for your clan of thieves. My second skill is in the use of poisons and this blade is coated in one made just for you and other misogynists. It will render you impotent by causing necrosis in your testicles. In other words by the end of the day your balls will have rotted off." Naruko rushes forward and attempts to kick the Raven haired woman in the side. The woman leaps backwards only to feel like the kick still partially connect, that's something worth looking into. At that moment Hinata activates one of the traps and a volley of kunai are launched at the woman. She easily dodges only to find she landed on a false covering for the ground. She begins to fall into a pit, which she realizes is covered in spikes, but manages to stop herself with an application of chakra to her hands on the wall. She flips herself up and onto the ground again only to be met with Naruko's foot connecting to her face.

Before she can recover she sees a fireball heading towards her courtesy of the Uchiha, who had been freed by Hinata and then forced himself to work through the hand signs despite the pain. Kurenai uses the Kawarimi with a log only to be met by the heiress.

"You're in my range of divination. Hakke Rokujūyon Shō!" She throws two strikes forward both aimed at the woman's torso. "Two palms!" She throws another two, these aimed at the arms. "Four Palms!" She lashes out with four more strikes all aimed at tenketsu in the woman's torso. "Eight Palms!" She sends out another eight strikes now deviating into attacking the legs as well. "Sixteen Palms!" She's now peppering the woman's entire body with welts from her attacks. "Thirty-Two Palms!" Her strikes had been speeding up the entire time and had become a blur. "Sixty-Four Palms!"

She knew it was the real Kurenai and had avoided the ball all thanks to her Byakugan. She blinks in surprise however as the woman's body vanishes in a puff of smoke. "What?!" She had a chakra system there's no way! She deactivates her Byakugan for the moment, she was running low on chakra after performing the technique.

"Her energy is back in the center of the training field. But I think we need to get Sasuke to a hospital to remove that poison. I just lost the feeling of the energy by the way." Hinata nods at the latter half of the statement, she saw the girls eyes return to being purple and the spikes of hair fell back down.

"Are you saying we abandon the test?"

"She never said we couldn't leave and come back, if we hurry we might pass."

"There's no need for that. You three already passed." The girls blink in surprise and Sasuke just stares dumbly, feeling delirious.

"Kurenai-sensei, but we didn't capture you." It was Hinata who spoke.

"I know I merely told you that you needed to attempt to. You three did just that. Not only that but you passed the secret test."

"What? Senju is the best?! That's a lie and you all know it!" Sasuke could barely tell what was happening.

"I should probably give him the antidote." That said she walks over and injects a syringe into his neck. "He should be feeling better in about an hour." She clears her throat. "Anyways, there is a secret test to see if you three could work together as a team, even when you knew one of you would fail as a consequence. Here in Konoha we value teamwork above all else so if you failed to work together you would have failed together. By the way, you all need to work on your acting skills, Sasuke wouldn't have fooled a child with that act. If you're going to say something don't over exaggerate, I'll bet you two really thought I saw Naruko as a demon." The girls nod, they had been fooled by the woman.

"But I can't blame you, my third extra jonin level skill is in manipulation and torture, I had been manipulating how you three would act since yesterday. And as you might have noticed, I never used a single Genjutsu that fight. That's because I intentionally spread information I wanted you to act wrongly on."

"So are you not S-rank in Genjutsu?" Naruko asks slightly disappointed.

"Oh no that's the truth, but it should be made clear no elite jonin is a one trick pony. Now then, seeing as you all passed I'll give you the rest of the day to relax. You may want to stop by the hospital before tomorrow so the med nin can patch you up. Meet here at 8am, I'll be breaking down our training and work schedule."

The three kids nod and make their way to the hospital. Eager to get some rest in after the stress of the test.

* * *

The Hokage stares at the new Jonin-sensei in charge of the first academies students. "Team 1?"

"Failed. Recommendation, send them to the reserves."

"Team 2?"

"Failed. Recommendation, give them remedial lessons at one of the other academies and let them try again next year."

"Team 3?"

"Failed. Recommendation, send them to the reserves."

"Team 4?"

"Kick them out of the program."

"Team 5?"

"Passed. Will be beginning missions shortly."

"Team 6?"

"Passed. Training begins later today."

"Team 9?"

"Failed. Recommendation, send them to the reserves."

"You seven are dismissed. Now then you three." He says gesturing to the elite jonin in the room. "How did your teams do? I want full reports on my desk by tomorrow evening, for now just summarize. Now then Kurenai?"

"Team 7 passed. They showed exemplary deductive skills and teamwork. While they lack experience they already understand the value in helping one another and actually took the time to set up traps in the training field. Each one of them is already strong enough to be low chunin."

"Good. Kakashi?"

"Team 8 passed. They only barely did but they managed to pass the second half of the bell test. Their individual skills vary wildly. Kiba might be able to make chunin but Sakura is barely worthy of genin. Shino might as well be a chunin already."

"Team 10 passed. They have great teamwork and are already intimate with each others skills. They're only mid genin in strength but they've all got talent waiting to be dug up."

Hiruzen nods. It's not often that all the elite jonin end up passing their students. Last year Gai was the only one to do so out of four elites. This is a strong generation indeed. "Good, you're dismissed. I expect to see training reports every week and each of you here tomorrow for a mission." The teams trained by the elites were required to be reported on as they're considered a bigger investment of villages resources. Likewise they are required to take missions everyday except Saturday and Sunday, a regular team would only be required to take three a week. Well assuming they're D-ranks, if they are higher ranking then the normal required amounts are ignored for every week they're on that mission.

The three ninja salute their Hokage and then vanish in puffs of smoke. They had training to plan.

* * *

A/N Man that was my longest chapter by far, with a total of 10k words before the authors note. It was fun to write though. The fight was actually pretty difficult, I'm not at all used to writing fight scenes and that was my longest one yet so I hope it was alright. Anyways what did you think of the Chapter? Good, bad? What about the the way I've described elite jonin? Also just to make things clear just because Hinata has desires for Naruko does not mean I'm going to be making lemons of the two while they're twelve. So what did you think of my alternate test? Better or worse than the bell test? Or did it not really make a difference? Please if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. Lastly I wanted to thank everyone who has been following, and favoriting the story. Seriously at the time of me writing this note I have 60 followers and 46 favorites and it hasn't even been a week. You all rock! I also want to thank everyone who has taken the time to leave a review, they always bring up my mood and inspire me to keep writing. Anyways until next time.

Jutsu List

Hakke Rokujūyon Shō - Eight Trigrams Sixty Four Palms

Kawarimi no Jutsu - Substitution technique

CM 10/30/2018


	6. Meeting the Goddess

" I can't believe she stabbed me."

"To be fair she did say she wouldn't hesitate to harm us in the fight, y'know after she broke my wrist."

"I think our plan of trying to enrage a jonin into chasing a single genin was a little flawed."

"No shit Hinata, she stabbed me!"

"Calm down Sasuke the medic nin already patched you up, there's not even a hole in your hand anymore"

"Yeah but it still hurts. And you know you'd be madder if she had done the same to Naruko."

"Naruko is my girlfriend of course I'd be madder. And she injured all of us so it's not like you're the only one who go attacked."

"Yeah breaking my wrist hurt a lot."

Sasuke looks at Naruko seeing the fully healed wrist. "You know I hadn't thought about it yesterday, but how did your wrist heal before we even made it to the hospital?" He had been too delirious from the poison to question anything yesterday. Kurenai had told him it would cause necrosis but all it really did was cause him to hallucinate and to become feverish. She had been playing them the entire time.

Naruko looks down at her wrist and then shrugs, "I just heal really fast I guess." She wasn't sure if it was because she used the nature transformation or if it's the demon inside of her. Maybe both.

The three genin were currently gathered in training ground 14 once more. Their sensei should arrive any minute now. With a puff of smoke the woman appears. Speak of the devil. "Good you three are here. Before we begin I wanted to congratulate you one more time on passing my test. You three need a lot of work, but you might just make it."

"Apologize."

"For what Sasuke?"

"For stabbing me!" Hinata lets out a sign of annoyance.

"Will you shut up about that."

"Not until she apologizes."

"Would stabbing you again count as an apology, because that's the best you're going to get if you keep talking."

"Shutting up."

Naruko speaks up. "Hey sensei. I hadn't really thought about it yesterday but what was the purpose of the glass balls?"

"They represent an important package that you don't want to damage fighting another ninja. Be it battle plans, a hostage or official you're looking to rescue/capture, or just a jutsu scroll that we might not have in the village. In any of those situations you would fail your mission if you damaged those things. But you three have nothing to worry about, like I said you passed and that includes not damaging the balls. They were also meant to make you work against each other but you three didn't even consider it. A large part of the reason you passed."

The red head nods along with the explanation, it made sense so she didn't question it. The red eyed woman continues."Now then as I said yesterday I'll be breaking down our training schedule. We'll meet here at 8am every weekday. Until 11am we'll be doing teamwork exercises. This will include practicing moving in formation along with combination attacks, and general training for teaching you to predict your teammates action. Then we'll have lunch and go to the mission office. we should generally be finished by 1pm. Then I'll have the three of you spar against each other in a free for all for either an hour or until there is a winner. At 2pm I will train the winner in a one on one session, then at 3pm I'll train the person who comes in second. Finally at 4pm I'll train one who came in last. While you aren't required to stay and train while the one on ones are happening, I would encourage you to take the time to train with the person not training with me."

Before they can ask any questions she continues. "On Saturday we'll meet here at 9am and will be doing mock battles. Sometimes it will be all three of you against me, other times it will be two of you against the other. And sometimes I will have other leaf ninja come act as your enemies. The ninja I bring in could range anywhere from an elite jonin like myself to another team of genin. We will do this for two hours. Then you'll be given a lunch break and We'll do more one on ones. This time it will be for two hours each. On these days the order is picked randomly. You will have Sundays off. I recommend avoiding training on those days to give your bodies a chance to rest. Constant work will only do harm. Lastly I encourage you to do your own physical conditioning as I will not be wasting our time by making you run laps. However that being said, I wake up at 5am to begin my own work outs, if any of you are industrious enough to find me then I'll allow you to join me. Now any questions?"

"What will we be doing during the one on ones? And will there be a difference between the weekdays and Saturday?" It was the only male member of the team who asked.

"There will be differences between the two. On Tuesday, Thursday and an hour on Saturday I will be training you in the subject you chose for your self study. On Monday, Wednesday, Friday and the other hour on Saturday I will be training you in the core ninja arts along with one extra skill I think you would benefit from. The order of what we focus on will be different week to week." Sasuke nods accepting that answer. Hinata takes her turn and asks.

"What should we expect on these missions?"

"They're D-ranks. They're going to seem like chores at first but try and look for the hidden training in them."

The red head asks. "Are we not taking missions on weekends?"

"No, the weekends are for having a greater focus on training and relaxation. Everyone needs a break sometimes." Seeing as there are no more questions she continues. "Alright, we've wasted enough time talking about training let's actually start training. We're going to start real basic." She takes out three blindfolds and one of the glass balls. "I want you all to put these on, over your eyes. Hinata if you activate your Byakugan I will know and I will punish you." The three genin each walk up and grab a blindfold putting it on and awaiting further orders. "Good, now I want you to pass the ball between each other. If the ball breaks then the person who wasn't supposed to be throwing or catching will have a small dose of poison injected into them. It will only subtly change their senses but each dose will increase the effect. Don't worry it won't cause any lasting damage and isn't lethal. The antidote is fast acting as well."

"Why is the person not involved getting punished?"

"Because more often than not it's not you who is punished for your mistakes, it's your teammates." Her tone was grim, there wasn't a single jonin in Konoha who hadn't seen that principal first hand. She walks over and places the ball in Naruko's hand. The girl gets the message and speaks, "Incoming Hina-chan." She tosses the ball to where she last saw the other girl. The sound of a ball shattering rings through the air. Kurenai expected as much, Hinata and Sasuke are going to have an especially hard time with this, they've been trained to rely on their visual prowess. She walks over to the boy and gently pricks him with a poisoned senbon, she then takes out another ball and gives it to him.

And so it goes, by the end of the three hours the kids could barely toss the ball straight. Unsurprisingly Naruko had the easiest time catching the ball and working without her vision. She had a sneaking suspicion the girl had already started to develop an immunity to her poison, Kurenai would have to give her more potent dosages.

That was another benefit of this exercise she didn't tell them, they'd all develop an immunity to basic sensory and paralytic poisons by the time they actually mastered the exercise. Seeing as they need to move on she quickly tosses three senbon into each of their necks, this one laced with the antidote. In less than a minute all three of the kids had stopped staggering and removed their blindfolds. "Alright let's go get lunch. Today we'll eat out, you can consider it a celebration for becoming my genin, but starting tomorrow there will be a rotation of who brings lunch for everybody, Sasuke your first. Buy it or make it, it's up to you. Hinata your after Sasuke, followed by Naruko. I'll bring lunches for us last."

"What's the point?" Sasuke didn't get what the point in having them all eat together was.

"You all might be teammates and it's fine if you can just work together, but things work better for everyone, well maybe not your enemies, if you three actually forge interpersonal bonds. It makes it harder for someone pretending to be you to slip in and it gives you a base to build morale." Sasuke was quickly finding he liked his new sensei. While Iruka was fine he never went nearly as in detail when answering questions. Though to give the man some credit he had to work through ten years of civilian curriculum in six as well as finding the time to make sure they are ready to actually be ninja.

"Now then anywhere in particular you'd like to go?"

"Ichiraku Ramen."

"Yakiniku Q."

The two girls spoke at the same time and stare at each other. Hinata's expression is stern, Naruko's is challenging. Naruko's turns into a pout. Hinata sighs, "The Dumpling shop?" It was also known as the Dango shop. Naruko nods her head, she'd settle for that.

Kurenai looks at the boy, "You fine with that Sasuke?"

"I don't mind."

Kurenai nods and says "Then let's go to the Dumpling shop." She wonders if a certain summoner will be there.

* * *

She was. She had also immediately noticed her best friend walking in with a bunch of brats. "Hey Nai-chan, who're the kids?"

"Hey Anko, these are my genin. Naruko, Hinata, Sasuke, meet Mitarashi Anko, my best friend. Anko meet my genin." Anko smiles wickedly, the three kids were blushing, well two of them were, the redhead was confused. All three of them were staring at her open trench coat with nothing but mesh underneath.

"Ah look at them they're so embarrassed by a mature woman like myself. Well, do you like what you see?"

"Yes." Anko blinks in surprise as the Hyuuga girl answers, she had been expecting her to be spluttering.

"Hey Hina-chan, would you like it if I dressed like that? You're blushing a lot."

"Only in private." Naruko nods, accepting the answer.

"Hina-chan do you like them big like hers?"

"No I actually prefer that yours are smaller."

"Oh my Nai-chan it looks to me like you've got a couple of little cuties on your team, send them to me in a few years. They might just end up being my type." Anko says slyly.

Kurenai snorts and says. "I'm going to tell Hana you said that."

"No don't do it Nai-chan! I was only kidding! You know I love Hana!" The tears were fake and they both knew it. Anko and Hana Inuzuka had been dating for a few years now and Anko had told Kurenai in private she wanted to put a ring on the other girls finger once the seal on her neck was removed.

"Do you mean Hana Inuzuka, Kiba's older sister?" It was Hinata who asked, a devious grin forming on her lips.

"You know the little brat?"

"He was in our class."

"Well then yeah, I've been dating Hana-chan for about three years now."

"Does she knows her little brother called us," She gestures between herself and Naru-chan, "dykes before? When we came out. And on multiple other occasions."

Anko cackles, "Oh Hana-chan's gonna love this, so will Tsume!" The brat was gonna get it.

"By the way, I've taken the liberty of ordering our food." Kurenai spoke up.

"Thanks sensei." The three kids chorus together.

"So Nai-chan what made you decide you wanted to take a team this year?" Anko had been a bit out of touch these past few days, she'd been busy torturing a traitorous chunin assistant for the past couple of days, and before that she had been on a long term mission.

"I heard Kushina-sensei's legacy was graduating." Kurenai had been a genin under the red haired woman, along with Maito Gai and Uzuki Yugao.

"You knew my mom?" It was Naruko who spoke, it's the first time there's been any mention of her mom outside of people mistaking her for the other woman. She'd be lying if it hadn't sparked some curiosity.

"Of course I knew her, she was my sensei when I was a genin."

"Oh cool, can you tell me anything about her? I only know her name, and that she is probably my Uzumaki parent. Assuming only one parent is." She actually didn't know for sure that Kushina is an Uzumaki, but given she knew that they had red hair and people mistake her for her mother, it would imply her mother does too, and as such is an Uzumaki.

"Why hasn't the Hokage or anyone else told you anything? It's not like he forbade people from telling you." It's true, he had only made information on the girls father classified. She's a little shocked that Hiashi or Teuchi had never told the girl.

"I've only ever asked the Hokage and all he says is, "Your parents were great heroes." or he'll just deflect the question. And then I guess I was never curious enough before now to ask Hiashi or Teuchi-ojisan."

Anko speaks up. "I'm surprised your little girlfriend never asked."

"Oh I've asked, but they both told me they wouldn't say anything until Naru-chan asks them herself." Kurenai blinks, well that explains it.

"So can you tell me about my mom or not?"

"Sure, anything in particular you'd like to know?"

Naruko hesitates before asking quietly. "Did she want me?" Maybe she was an unwanted child, like after a drunken night or something, and her mom just let the village sacrifice her.

"More than you'll ever know. The day she found out she was pregnant with you she seemed to be practically glowing with happiness. It was almost like Konoha had a second sun for a few weeks. As time wore on it became a more muted happiness. When she found out you were going to be a girl all she did for months was talk about how she'd make you her little princess."

Hinata gently runs her hand up and down Naru-chan's back. She knew the other girl must be feeling pretty emotional at hearing she was in fact loved, for now this is the best she can do to soothe her. She hears the girl faintly whisper, "Kaa-chan." Hinata can't help but smile. She knew the girl appreciated the gifts connecting her to the extinct clan. Because even if the girl would deny it, she knew deep down that the girl wanted desperately to know her family. But she buried it under layers of apathy towards them thanks to the villagers abuse. "Was she strong?"

"She and Tsunade-sama are the strongest kunoichi I've ever met. She was easily a kage level shinobi with S-rank Kenjutsu, Taijutsu, and Fuinjutsu. When she used with her signature chakra chains she was almost unstoppable on the battlefield. She was also Jonin level in every other ninja art. She had actually been in contention for becoming the Yondaime. She's the reason that I'm jonin level in Kenjutsu." Her Taijutsu style is also what Gai based the Goken on. He simply adapted it to better fit his body type and focus more on the pure force of it.

"What is her Taijutsu style like? Oh thank you." the latter half is stated as her food along with everyone elses is brought to them. She pointedly ignores the glare the server gives her.

"I think you'd like it you already seem fond of kicks. However I never learned her style, but I know someone who knows every level of the style. If you want to stick around after we're done today I'll introduce you." Kurenai was happy to help her student. She turns to look at the other two, seeing as they had been left out of the conversation only to see Hinata glaring at her fiercely. She acknowledges it and mouths the words "Later." She wasn't going to make a scene in public, they'd deal with whatever this problem is during their one on one later.

The group settles into Idle chatter for a bit only for Anko to shout, "Hey Hana-chan! You'll never guess what I found out!" The woman with long brown hair tied into a ponytail had just stepped into the dumpling shop. She had smelled her girlfriend was out of T&I and wanted to see her. She had also smelled Kurenai.

"Oh is there a discount on dango?" her voice has a teasing lilt to it.

"Don't even joke about that. No it's hilarious, well it will be for me. You'll be mad."

"What did Kiba do?" It was the only thing that really amused Anko that also made the brunette angry. That is to say her brother doing something stupid.

"Turns out he called these two a couple of dykes." She says jerking a thumb towards the genin. Seeing the look on her girlfriends face she laughs. "You can kill him later, hopefully while I get to watch, for now come eat with us." Hana sighs and takes the seat next to Anko. Leaning on her shoulder.

"I've missed you."

"I've missed you more."

The genin were all a little surprised, Anko had just been so boisterous. Now she was so well sweet.

"So Hana how did the mission go?"

"It was pretty easy just had to hunt down and capture a B-rank missing nin from Iwa. He was surprisingly weak for his rank."

The three jonin fall into conversation, while it's happening Sasuke is staring hard at Hana trying to remember where he saw her. Finally he gives up and just asks. "Do I know you from somewhere?"

"You were pretty little so you probably don't remember, but I was on Itachi-kuns team. I briefly went to the academy with him, but he had been a chunin at the time he was assigned to my team, thanks to him graduating early we had a missing space and he had just become chunin so he was put on my team. Since his own team died in the exam." Sasuke had been too young to remember Itachi's first team.

"So I used to hang out with Itachi-kun at your house after training."

Kurenai stands and speaks. "Sorry to interrupt," Not really, it's better for everyone if she gets the boys mind off Itachi. "But we need to go get our mission if we're going to stick to my schedule. It was good seeing you two. Be sure not to be caught going at in public. Again." The three genin look at them and raise an eyebrow at that, again?

* * *

As it turned out Kurenai hadn't been lying when she said D-ranks would be like chores. In fact they weren't just like chores they were chores. Oddly enough Naru-chan didn't seem to bothered by that. She actually seemed kind of happy. Maybe she had figured out the secret training in it. Hinata and Sasuke certainly hadn't. All they were doing was pulling weeds.

"How can you enjoy this Naruko?"

"Well it's a lot like what I have to do when I'm gardening, so it's not much different from what I do for fun." Well that explained it at least. Hinata couldn't bring herself to enjoy this. She had helped Naru-chan garden before but normally their was no old woman glaring at the redhead for the sin of being alive. Maybe that's the secret training, learning how to deal with clients who don't like them and who they, in turn, don't like.

They finished about an hour later, their hands dirty and their knees sore from squatting for so long. Kurenai-sensei hadn't helped them at all, instead just watching over them while relaxing. Maybe that is supposed to represent the fact that their Jonin-sensei won't always be there to help them. Hinata had to tell herself that there's really a meaning to this or she might have gone insane.

"Good job team, now we'll go report back to the Mission Desk. Then we'll get back to training." They only had to report directly to the Hokage for C-rank missions that end up involving combat or any higher ranked mission. Otherwise the Mission Desk would take care of things for them.

It was a simple affair, all they had to do was grab a form that was made specifically for D-ranks. Fill it out and then turn it in to the report box. The Mission Desk would do the rest.

They returned to training ground 14 and Kurenai spoke. "Alright as promised it's time for the free for all. Anything goes today, but know that in the future I will sometimes limit you to only two ninja arts of my choosing. Go at each other with the intent to kill, I will stop any killing blows so do not worry. If I have to stop a blow for you then you're out and have lost. Begin."

Naruko flies through a series of hand signs casting a genjutsu on her two teammates. "Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu." She doesn't wait to see if the Genjutsu worked or not, launching straight towards Hinata. She performs a spin kick only for her foot to meet chakra metal as Hinata raises her arm, Byakugan blazing.

"Naru-chan I've fought you enough times to know you always start with a genjutsu. It's why I always activate my Byakugan as soon as a fight starts." Naruko knew this fact well, her specialty is completed countered by Hina-chan and it would be by Sasuke as well once he unlocks his Sharingan. She'd have to ask Kurenai-sensei if she knew of a way around that. Naruko feels a heat quickly approaching from behind and dodges to the side. The fireball was now on a collision course with Hina-chan. The white eyed girl dodges out of the way only a second slower than her girlfriend.

She's met by the ocular prowess of the Uchiha. "When did you unlock your Sharingan?"

"Yesterday right before Kurenai-sensei stabbed me. Even with me being able to see everything in slow motion I couldn't react fast enough." He says lashing out with a punch that she deflects.

Kurenai smiles, that was part of the reason she had hurt him as badly as she had. He had a tool and the sooner he learns to use it the better. She can't wait to force him to learn how to use Genjutsu. He's fortunate enough to be able to cast Genjutsu through eye contact and she's not letting that go to waste. Really she's going to make all of them learn. Just as how Kushina-sensei made her learn to use Kenjutsu.

"Then do you realize you're in my range of divination?" She lashes forward with the Hakke Rokujūyon Shō. But she knows it's failing as she can feel none of her hits connecting. She couldn't manage to complete it, as she feels her girlfriends foot launching her to the side. She flips and slides back, tossing a volley of kunai at the other two. She manages to nick them both, they had become distracted by each other. Good all her kunai were laced in her poison, nothing lethal, simply a paralytic. She never brought the lethally poisoned kunai to spars. She sees Sasuke lock up just on time to get ax kicked by Naruko. His head goes crashing into the ground. And then he is gone, replaced by a log. She whirls as she spots him behind her, her Jyuken strike connects with his shoulder.

He felt his arm go limp and cursed. He can't cast Jutsu like this. And his Taijutsu is severely limited as well. He sluggishly attempts to retreat only to be met by foot to his temple. Or he would have had Kurenai-sensei not blocked it. "Sasuke you're out, you get to hang back with me while the other two finish." With that she grabs him and a feeling of nausea washes over him. "That's the Shunshin no Jutsu taking effect, it's a little had to stomach at first. By the way congratulations on activating your blood line. It's a powerful tool but try not to end up becoming overly reliant on it. Also it's okay to copy your allies techniques but you should ask for permission before using them, unless it's life or death. It may not seem like much but it shows them you respect them and their hard work. Additionally anything you copy you should train with because while you'll learn the jutsu, mastery still takes effort."

It's why Hatake Kakashi was the premier Ninjutsu specialist in Konoha. The man had learned hundreds of jutsu, it was mere hyperbole when people said he knew over a thousand, and more importantly he had mastered each and every one of them. It's why he is currently one of three active duty S-rank nin in the service of Konoha. The other two were Gai and Jiraiya. Kurenai was almost at that point herself, She just had to push her Kenjutsu a little farther and she'd be there. She'd likely make it within the next year. Of course that's just how it is with elite jonin, they were all either S-rank or borderline S-rank.

She turned her attention back to the two girls who had been fighting for the past minute. Neither were showing signs of fatigue, that's good. Fights made a bit of wave in terms of length and strength of the fighters. Genin and jonin tended to have short fights, while chunin and S-rank and above tended to have longer fights. For genin it's because they are so sloppy that their opponents are able to capitalize on their mistakes because they make so many of them. As for jonin it's the opposite, their opponents tend to be so skilled that as soon as they slip up they're dead. For chunin fights are longer because they are good enough to not make as many mistakes but they aren't good enough to capitalize on the slightest thing. S-rank nin almost never made mistakes and neither did their opponents. Well all this is assuming they are fighting people of roughly equal skill. She had gotten derailed from the fight but it's a good thing these girls have the stamina to fight longer fights. It will help them in the long run.

Naru-chan leaps backwards out of the way of her Jyuken strike. Hinata couldn't give Naru-chan time to sit still, if she used her nature transformation then Hinata might just lose. It's not like she has problems losing to the redhead but she's been waiting for hours to talk to Kurenai-sensei and losing will only put it off more. She dashes forward and imitating her girlfriends favorite move she performs a spin kick. Naru-chan blocks with her hand. Hinata smirks in victory. The kick is blocked but Naru-chan's hand falls limp.

"Hina-chan when did you learn to use the Jyuken with something other than your fingers?"

"I've been practicing it for a while now, I've always thought it silly that we don't use our legs in combat at all."

The favor of the fight quickly goes to Hinata as now that Naruko can't use her hand she was having a harder time of deflecting the strikes she couldn't dodge. She lunges forward with a strike aimed at Naruko's chest only to feel a foot connecting with her chin. She falls over unconscious. When she awakens next it's to the sight of her concerned girlfriend. "Sorry Hina-chan didn't mean to kick you that hard."

"It's okay Naru-chan. But last I checked you weren't that fast." It's true, Naruko hadn't been moving that fast during the entirety of the fight.

"Ah well I figured if I intentionally moved slower after you saw me using the nature transformation so much in the past two days you might have forgotten my true speed. Guess it worked." Hinata hadn't been expecting that but the redhead was absolutely right. She'd have to work on keeping track of these things better.

Kurenai finally speaks, having walked up when she was knocked out. "So Naruko will get to go first. Hinata you have an hour break, Sasuke you have two. As stated earlier I recommend you two practice working together while I'm with Naruko." Naru-chan smiles at the white eyed girl.

"I'll talk to you later Hina-chan. Just you wait before you know it I'll be winning all our spars." Naruko was excited, it was the first spar she had won against Hina-chan in a month.

"Talk to you soon." Hinata gives her girlfriend a quick peck and walks off with Sasuke in tow. Before she can leave Kurenai calls out.

"If you two want to practice together I'd recommend heading to training ground 23 it's typically empty at this time of day." The two nod and walk off. She turns to Naruko and says. "Alright, you're in luck, because you have the same specialty as me you actually get to practice it 4 times a week instead of three. But we aren't going to work on your genjutsu today. I'm going to be focusing on your ninjutsu instead. Do you know your affinity?"

"No I couldn't find any chakra paper." Well she couldn't find anywhere that would sell it to her.

"That's okay, I have some with me today." She gets out a small square sheet of paper. "Just channel some chakra into it. If the paper crinkles then you have raiton, if it's wet you have suiton, if it burns you have katon, if it crumbles you have doton, and finally if it splits you have fuuton."

Naruko takes hold of the paper and channels chakra into it. It splits into five pieces. One was burned, one was wet, one crinkled, one crumbled. The last one seemed normal. Kurenai had never heard of someone with all five elements. Maybe she should have just let Kakashi have the redhead. Well it's not like he'll say no if she asks him to help, he cares about her almost as much as she does. She looks at the result again, for her to have all five elements is insane. Wait, shouldn't there be four pieces and not five? "Naruko can I see that normal piece?" Naruko shrugs and hands it to her.

Kurenai gasps as the paper grows wet and then crumbles. She hadn't been channeling chakra. It's like the piece just sucked it out of her! She gets out another sheet. "Do it again for me." Naruko looks at her in confusion but does so again. The same result as last time. "Alright hand me the plain one again." Kurenai was careful with her chakra this time, making sure absolutely none was leaking out. She carefully grabs it again and once more it gets wet and crumbles. She felt it for sure that time, it's really sucking out her chakra.

"Sensei why are you putting your chakra in that small piece?"

"I'm not. Naruko, I think you have some kind of kekkei genkai." She had never heard of a kekkei genkai that lets someone suck chakra out of other people, or maybe even jutsu, before. But that's exactly what the paper was doing. She'd have to figure out a way to teach the girl to use this.

"Really, that's so cool, what do you think it does?"

"If I had to guess I'd say it sucks chakra out from others."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because the blank piece took my chakra without me channeling any, it even did so when I was holding it back."

"Oh, that's cool."

"So in light of our new discoveries we'll have you spend the first thirty minutes of today's one on one doing suiton training. Just grab a leaf off a tree." The girl runs to the nearest tree and snatches a leaf. "Your goal is two fold, first is to suck water out of the leave then to make it into a perfect sphere balanced on your finger. If you want to advance quickly in this you should probably do it outside of our regular training as well. Then for the latter half of the one on one we'll be trying to figure out ways for you to use your kekkei genkai, don't feel bad if you can't get it today or even in a few weeks."

Thirty minutes later Naruko had made practically no progress on drawing water out of the leaf, she was prepared to continue but Kurenai-sensei had alerted her it was time to switch focus. "Alright, I don't think either of us know how to activate your kekkei genkai, so for now I want you to try meditating. Maybe if you try to find your chakra like you did when you were in the academy it will work. Unfortunately Konoha only has doujutsu so we're unfamiliar with how to activate elemental or enhancement kekkei genkai. We can assume for now yours is elemental since the chakra paper was able to find it."

Naruko can somewhat feel her heart racing. The last time she did this she saw the demon and it had terrified her. Still she wants to know so despite her fears, she sits down in the lotus position and focuses on finding her chakra. It doesn't take long this time since she's grown so used to it. She opens her eyes and finds herself once more in the black space illuminated only by the two chakra sources. She sees her own blue one. It's grown bigger, and seems to have solidified, was that because she has better chakra control?

She looks at it for several moments, there doesn't seem to be anything special about it. She walks up to it and touches it. No she's certain, her chakra is normal. She turns around and looks towards the other source. It was still three different colors. Interestingly it seems like the red has receded a bit and it's more white and yellow now. With a great amount of hesitation she walks towards it. It doesn't seem to react this time. Against her better judgment she places her hand on the yellow part. It's familiar, this is made of the same thing as that nature energy. But it's not what she's looking for. She places her hand on the white part and with a yelp she finds herself being drawn in. She blacks out.

* * *

On the outside Kurenai was watching in concern. She knew the girl contained the demon and this could be dangerous. She had almost interrupted as the girl started pulsing chakra. But as quickly as it started, it stopped. And then things changed again. Now her hair was forming horns, or maybe ears, and she seemed to have red eyeliner as well. Then that stopped too.

Then she changed again. The girls hair turned white for only the briefest of seconds but she was sure of it. At least she never felt that evil chakra so that's a good sign.

* * *

When Naruko awoke she was in a temple of some sort. It was illuminated by candlelight and the walls were decorated in tapestries. They all had one thing in common. A woman with long hair and horns atop her head. Naruko slowly walks down the long chamber of the temple. It takes her a few minutes but finally she reaches the end. There are two statues standing next to each other at the altar. One is much larger than the other and seems to represent a great tree. The other showed a monstrous creature with ten waving tails. A figure seems to be sitting at the altar, surrounded by candles. Interestingly only two of the candles seem to be casting shadows. One onto each statue.

Slowly the figure stands and reveals it to be a woman. She was the tallest woman Naruko had ever seen, If she had to guess she was just under seven feet tall. She had two long horns protruding from her head. Naruko realized this was the woman on the tapestries. Slowly the woman turns towards her and the redhead gasps when she sees the woman's eyes. Staring back at her is a pair of Byakugan eyes. The woman's eyes seem to widen. Her voice is soft like a fine silk, yet held a power that commanded ones attention. "Is that you Kagura?" Before Naruko can respond she shakes her head. "No. You seem to be of a similar spirit but you are not my granddaughter. So then you must be my jailer."

"Are you the demon that attacked the village?"

The shadow on the monsters statue seemed to grow. "I am not the Juubi, rather it is me."

"Is that it's proper name?" The woman nods so Naruko continues. "So then who are you?"

"I've gone by many names. Some know me as the Rabbit Goddess, others know me as the Oni, and even still others know me as the Mother of Chakra. But the name I was given by my own parents is Otsutuski Kaguya. Now then child I have been unjustly sealed, won't you free me?"

Naruko didn't know what to think, this woman had basically called herself god, as well as calling herself the demon that indirectly caused her so much suffering. And now she is just asking to be free. "What will happen if I let you out?"

"You will die, but know that your death will have allowed the world to achieve peace."

"Then I can't let you go, not now at least. I have people I have to keep on living for." Naruko still had a long life to live, and she doesn't care about world peace enough to die for it.

"I see, then I will merely have to wait a little while longer." The conversation dies at that, before Naruko remembers what she came here for in the first place.

"I seem to have an ability to suck out chakra, but I have no idea how to use it. Do you know about it?"

"My my, it seems you really are like Kagura, likely because your my first jailer to be sealed as infant. Yes I know of that ability, it is mine." Who is this Kagura person, she had mentioned it's her granddaughter, but that doesn't really explain much.

"Then can you tell me how to use it?"

"Can you tell me how to breath? I cannot explain how to use instinct." Naruko guessed that made sense. It wasn't something she thought about then it was simply something she would have to do.

"I see, thank you for the help Kaguya-san." The two shadows seem to merge into one on the empty wall between the statues.

"Of course child, perhaps we shall meet again." The candles all flicker out drowning Naruko in the darkness.

* * *

Her eyes snapped open and she found herself in the real world once more. Kurenai was looking at her in concern, about what? She didn't know.

"So what happened, did you figure anything out?"

"I think I just need to use my instinct and it will happen." She didn't want to tell anyone but Hina-chan about what she saw yet. Who knew how the Hokage would react if he found out. "How long was I out?"

"It just hit the thirty minute mark, Hinata should be arriving for her lesson soon. We'll talk about this more later okay? I don't want you trying to use your kekkei genkai until we know you can control it." She didn't want the girl to accidentally kill an ally by sucking out all of their chakra. "Go check training ground 23 to see if Sasuke is there, if he is you can decide if you want to take my advice or go home." Naruko nods and heads out. She smiles as she sees her girlfriend entering the training ground.

Hinata smiles back but once she passes her face turns serious. She walks right up to Kurenai-sensei and stands there silently. After several minutes of silence Kurenai-sensei speaks first. "Alright what's the problem."

"If you knew who Naru-chan was, if you knew her mother and became our sensei just to teach her. Why were you not there for her as a child? Why did she have to grow up being abused when you should have been there to take care of her?"

"I was there for her."

"Don't you lie to me! She was in the orphanage for years before being given an apartment, and the fact that she and I have never seen you even on her birthdays means you weren't there!" Hinata was glaring fiercely at her.

"I was afraid of that, she really doesn't remember me then." Kurenai's tone was one of sorrow. "I raised Naruko until she was three years old."

"Then why was she in the orphanage?"

"The Hokage ordered that I stop taking care of her."

"And you followed that order?" Hinata would never follow an order like that, if the Hokage ordered her to stop dating Naru-chan she would become a missing-nin sooner than that.

"Not at first, I was seventeen when he gave the order, and it was Kushina-sensei's daughter, of course I would ignore it. But He forced me to. He started sending my team and I on long term and difficult missions. By the time I was in the village for more than a few hours at a time Naruko was already seven years old. It's why none of Kushina-sensei's students were there for Naruko. I couldn't not do missions, I wouldn't have even been able to pay for her to survive. I'll let you in on a secret Hinata. The village doesn't typically put orphans in apartments or give them stipends to live off of. They're expected to survive on their own once they leave the orphanage. So where do you think Naruko's living expenses has been coming from for the past several years? The Hokage may have forbidden me from interacting with her directly until she was a genin, but I could still at least give her as much financial support as I could."

Hinata wasn't sure what to think of all this. It had been so much easier when she had just thought Kurenai-sensei was a heartless bitch. But this, how is she supposed to react to the knowledge that their leader not only allowed the girl to be abused, but also went out of his way to ensure she's alone? Though another question comes to mind. "If you were giving her financial support then why would you only barely give her enough to live off of?"

"What do you mean "barely"? I was sending her more than half of my pay from each mission. For a child that should have been enough to live with some extravagance." Kurenai-sensei's expression had darkened. "Oh. Someone has been stealing from Naruko's cut." There was going to be hell to pay, and when she was through the bastard behind it would be a mentally broken wreck who only knows how to wallow in agony. Hell she bet Gai would get in on it to. So that begs the question, was it the Hokage who had betrayed her like this, or maybe it was just a greedy banker. Any number of people could be behind it. She let's out a sigh, well looks like she just gained a new goal on top of training her genin. Looking at Hinata she says, "Do you know the Lullaby of Takeda? Because if you're still not convinced that I raised her try singing it to her, I bet she can still sing along. It always was her favorite lullaby."

Hinata nods, she was familiar with it and it would be worth testing. Of course she was no longer boiling in anger at Kurenai-sensei. Instead it was directed at her Hokage and whoever else was in on harming the love of her life.

"Now then why don't we get started on training you. We'll be working on Ninjutsu today."

* * *

The two girls met up again after Hinata was finished with her training, they decided to train combinations together for an extra hour like Kurenai-sensei recommended.

"Hey Hina-chan, I interacted with the demon today, well sort of."

"What do you mean sort of?" Hinata was curious, she hadn't felt the foul chakra so Naru-chan probably didn't use it.

"Well I met a woman inside the seal, she claimed that the monster is a part of her."

Well that was not what Hinata was expecting at all. "Did she say anything else?"

"Well she asked me to free her and die in the process. I told her no." Hinata certainly hoped so, she couldn't bare the thought of her redheaded love dying.

"Hey Naruko are you familiar with the Lullaby of Takeda?" Her conversation with Kurenai-sensei was still on her mind.

"Not that I'm aware of, you know they never sang me lullabies at the orphanage." Oh Hinata knew that fact all to well.

"Just try singing along with me if you think you know the words okay?"

"Sure" And with that Hinata begins.

"Mori mo iyagaru, Bon kara saki-nya  
Yuki mo chiratsuku-shi, Ko mo naku-shi

Bon ga kita-tote, Nani ureshi-karo  
Katabira wa nashi, Obi wa nashi

Kono ko you naku, Mori wo ba ijiru  
Mori mo ichi-nichi, Yaseru-yara

Hayo-mo yuki-taya, Kono zaisho koete  
Mukou ni mieru wa, Oya no uchi  
Mukou ni mieru wa, Oya no uchi"

It only took until the second line of the song for Naruko to start singing along, her voice matching the tune of the song perfectly. She looks at her girlfriend bewildered. "Hey how'd you know I somehow knew that song."

"I think you should ask Kurenai-sensei to sing it to you. She might have better answers for you." Hinata wanted to tell the girl, but felt it would be better for both her sensei and her girlfriend to work this out together. With that the two girls fall into a comfortable silence and finish their training together. Once hours past Naruko says.

"I've gotta go meet Kurenai-sensei so she can show me to that friend that knows Kaa-chan's Taijutsu."

"Alright, I'll talk to you tomorrow." As Naruko starts to walk off she thinks of something. "Hey Naru-chan, this Sunday let's go have a picnic. We haven't been on a real date in a while." Naruko turns and smiles at her.

"You just want me to cook for you. But alright, I love going on dates with you Hina-chan."

* * *

A/N So Naruko finally met Kaguya. A bit of Naruko's missing past is revealed. As always I'll be interested to hear what you think of the chapter. If any of you are curious what the lullaby sounds like look up the Lullaby of Takeda by Akai Tori. It also gets revealed that Hiruzen is a bit more of a bastard then we thought. Anyways time for the questions. What did you think of the encounter with Anko and Hana? Or about the meeting with Kaguya? Or Naruko apparently being like this "mysterious" Kagura character? Or just your thoughts in general? Anyways, until next time.

Jutsu list

Hakke Rokujūyon Shō – Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms

Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu – Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique

Shunshin no Jutsu – Body Flicker Technique

Kawarimi no Jutsu – Substitution Technique

CM 10/31/2018

PS. Just wrote my sign off and remembered it's the spookiest day of the year and wanted to wish you all a happy Halloween.


	7. Weirdos and Dating

"So Kurenai-sensei, who is this friend of yours?"

Kurenai looks at her redheaded student as they make their way to training ground 38, where he typically is training his team. "He was one of my teammates. A fair warning however, he's a bit . . . eccentric" That was an understatement, to say the least. Most thought the man had lost his marbles years ago. But he was undeniably strong. He was an S-rank nin for a good reason and is practically unmatched in Taijutsu. Not to mention he had a heart of gold.

"Kurenai-sensei I think most of the ninja in this village are eccentric." Every high ranking ninja the redhead had ever met had some weird quirk to them.

"How do you I think I fall in that category?" The red eyed woman says quirking an eyebrow. Naruko gestures to her and says.

"You wear sealing scrolls as clothes." Sure they were hidden under the guise of being bandages with designs, which was still weird, but that doesn't change what they were.

"Point taken."

"Oh yeah, Hina-chan sung me a lullaby and said I should ask you about it. Do you know anything about it?" Kurenai's breath hitches. She wasn't ready for this at all. She loved the girl like a daughter/sister but she wasn't mentally ready to let the girl know personally how deeply she failed her.

"We, uh, should talk about it later, see we're here." She says as they step into the training ground. Naruko could have sworn she heard the call of some weird creature. It sounded like.

"Youth!" No, she was definitely hearing that. Along with the words. "Gai-sensei!" it sounded weirdly familiar but she can't put her finger on it.

They continue making their way through the training ground and find the strangest combination of people Naruko had ever seen, she also realized she recognized two of them, one better than the other. The first she recognized was Hyuuga Neji, Hina-chan's cousin. He had long brown hair, and wore the Konoha forehead protector over his forehead. She wonders if he just prefers it there of if he's covering the caged bird seal. He was also wearing black ninja pants and sandals, along with a beige jacket.

The other person she recognized seemed to have split in two. It was the weird green guy who told her about her abnormal weights. He had black hair styled in a bowl cut. In addition to that he was wearing green spandex and had the jonin flak vest. He was aslso wearing orange leg warmers. He had the largest eyebrows she had ever seen. Were they alive? Oddly enough when he smiled his teeth seemed to twinkle.

He also had a smaller version of himself that had a softer face and larger eyes. Along with that he didn't have a flak vest of any kind so he was likely a genin. Both men had their for head protectors around their waist like she did. Only they had the standard cloth.

If asked however Naruko would have to say the last person was the weirdest of all. She had brown hair tied into two buns that kind of gave her the appearance of a panda. On top of that she was wearing clothing foreign to Konoha with a pink tang shirt. But the odd thing was she reminded Naruko eerily of the bland kids from her class. It's like she had somehow retained that blandness while also making herself stand out. The girl was a paradox and Naruko didn't like that.

The Jonin seemed to notice them and turned. "Kurenai! It's great to see you my most youthful friend!" The man seemed to only know how to shout. Naruko could have sworn the eyebrows seemed to be moving on their own.

"It's good to see you too Gai, we should really catch up sometime, maybe over coffee. But I'm actually here to introduce you to my student." She says gesturing to the redhead. Gai looks towards the young girl and can't help but notice she's grown to look even more like her mother. He smiles at her, his teeth twinkles and he gives her a thumbs up. He had to hide the grim expression that threatened to come out. His team used coffee as code for something horrible is happening, either to them or someone they care about. It was because Kushina-sensei hated coffee and similarly passed the dislike to her students.

"I've already met the most youthful Naruko-san she's only grown more like her mother." Naruko had to remind herself that he was Kurenai-sensei's teammate so of course he knew her mother too.

"I didn't realize you two were acquainted." Naruko speaks up now.

"I met the weird green guy, I think you called him Gai, about a year ago while running laps around the village. He had also told me about my weights being abnormally high, at least in comparison to most ninja." Kurenai nods and says.

"Well Gai, we're here to see if you'd be willing to show her the basic forms of Uzuken and Uzuashi." The Uzumaki Taijutsu style was two fold, their was the Uzuken, which focused on the use of the upper body in combat. Then there was the Uzuashi which focused on the lower body. Each one was formidable on it's own but it was the strongest when both styles were put in practice together. Gai had mostly adapted the Goken off of the Uzuken while taking a few points of inspiration from the Uzuashi as well.

"Yosh! I would be honored to teach young Naruko her mother's style! And if I cannot do so then I will run around Konoha with only my hands and 1 ton strapped to each leg! And if-" Kurenai cut's him off before he launches into his tangent. He probably would do it regardless. There is a reason he is nearly unmatched.

"Don't worry Gai, if anyone could teach her the style it's you."

"Come Naruko-san, join my team and I in our exercises, we were just about to climb the Hokage Monument with only one hand. Once that's done I'll teach you the first form of each style." Naruko nods. It will probably be hell, even for her, but apparently this style suits her. And somewhere deep inside she has to admit it also connects her with her Kaa-chan.

"Gai-sensei, why are you wasting time on this failure?" It was Neji who spoke up.

"Neji-kun it will never be a waste of my time to help those seeking to improve themselves."

"She is weak and she is fated to always be weak." This earns the ire of Kurenai who speaks up now.

"Gai what are you doing Saturday, because I was wondering if perhaps you'd like to have a little tournament between our two teams, if only so your genin would put his money where his mouth is." She had confidence her team would win, even if they are brand new. Talent like theirs comes once in a generation.

"That sounds most youthful! We can work out the details over coffee later. Now come we have a monument to climb." Without another word the group of five leave Kurenai at the training ground.

* * *

Gai and Kurenai sat across from one another in the woman's apartment. After several moments of silence Gai finally speaks up. "You know Asuma-san might get jealous if he found out you invited another man into your home, even if we are old friends."

"Depending on what happens in the near future I might break up with him."

"Oh is that what's troubling you?" He didn't think that was the case, Kurenai always went to either Anko or Yugao if she was having relationship issues.

"No, not him specifically, but he could be part of the problem."

"So then what is the problem?"

"Someone has been stealing most the money I've been sending Naruko."

"What?"

"You heard me, someone has been making sure Naruko barely gets enough money to survive, while pocketing the rest of my money."

Gai couldn't believe it, He knew how much of Kurenai's money was being sent to the girl. The woman as an elite jonin could have afforded much more than the modest life style she's living. She had instead chosen to live a spartan lifestyle so the redhead could live comfortably. This was most unyouthful.

"Do you have any idea who?"

"It's most likely someone in the process, so either Hokage-sama or whoever brings the money to Naruko."

"Remind me how does Asuma-san play into that?"

"Hokage-sama often has him drop off the money as he claims his son wouldn't mess with it because of our relationship." She couldn't choose who drops off the money as otherwise she would do it herself or have Anko, who had never been banned from the child but also never had a personal connection, do it.

"So we have two known suspects along with whoever Hokage-sama gets to do it when Asuma-san isn't here." His expression was grim, this was serious. Someone had been going out of their way to screw both Kurenai and Naruko over. "Next time you deliver the ryo to Hokage-sama I will watch for the package. What should I look for?"

"It will be a red envelope. I'll be delivering it directly to Hokage-sama on Monday. That's our time frame." Gai nods, they would catch whoever has been appropriating his friends funds.

* * *

As it turned out Naruko's work in turning the academy style into something she preferred had now directly harmed her ability to learn her mothers style. She hadn't realized it but she had developed a lot of bad habits that needed to be removed first before she could even start on either the Uzuken or Uzuashi. She had also been told not to increase her weights anymore than she currently has. Apparently the type of strength gained from weights doesn't greatly benefit the style and it would be better if she used resistance seals. When she said she couldn't afford them Gai merely stated he would make them for her free of charge.

So Gai simply asked her for something she would be fine with him drawing the seals on. As long as the object with the seal was connected to her then her whole body would feel like she's wading through mud. She was told once it felt like she was walking around normally again she should put chakra into the seal until it felt like wading through mud once more. After much deliberation she decided to have him draw it on the spiral charm attached to her hair senbon. He had also recommended that because movement will noticeably change for her she should practice transitioning between the seal being active and inactive.

And so the rest of the week passed by relatively uneventfully. They kept doing D-ranks, which Naruko still found enjoyable. And as ordered they had taken turns bringing lunch for everyone. It had been weird feeling like she was wading through mud all the time. It still felt weird frankly, but at least she would get both faster and stronger from this. She had also learned how to do her hair on her own now so that was good.

When Saturday rolled around she was wondering just how Kurenai-sensei was going to have the two teams fight each other. She had met up with her girlfriend and Sasuke and they simply talked about how their mornings had been.

"I'm looking forward to our date tomorrow."

"Are you sure you're not just looking forward to my cooking?"

"I always look forward to your cooking. But in this case I'm looking forward to some time alone between the two us." Hinata meant it, the last time they had anything resembling truly private time was after graduating but that got interrupted by Mizuki defecting. Her thoughts turn a little dark as she thinks about something she found out recently, she'd have to tell her girlfriend tomorrow.

Before the two girls can continue discussing their date, Kurenai appears in the training ground with Gai. They don't say anything until a minute later when his genin arrive. Naruko notes with some amusement her teammates were as weirded out by Gai as she had been. Though she still seemed to be the only one put off by Tenten, that was the bland (yet not) girls name.

Kurenai speaks, "As I told you all before, on Saturdays we will be doing actual mock battles. Today you'll be up against another genin team. Meet last years Team 3 now simply known as Team Gai." She gestures from right to left. "This is Tenten, Rock Lee, and Hyuuga Neji. Today you will be fighting in a team battle. As per our usual rules for sparring fight to kill, unless your opponent is already incapacitated, Gai and I will interrupt any killing blows long before they can land. Any questions?"

"Is the objective just to incapacitate the other team?"

"Yes, for today there is no hidden goal. If there are no other questions then begin." With that the two jonin leap backward and out of the way.

Sasuke starts to fly through hand seals for the Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu but he is unable to complete them as an orange leg warmer comes sailing toward his face. Before it can connect he finds his white eyed teammate blocking it with her arm guards. "You should activate your Sharingan sooner rather than later." She already had her Byakugan blazing. He nods and his eyes bleed red. Lee had jumped back, just on time to avoid a kick to the head by the Uzumaki.

The three had unfortunately ended up grouping up perfectly for Tenten to unleash a hail of kunai and shuriken at them. The three dodge easy enough and Naruko calls, "Just defend me for three seconds." The other two nod and deflect the kunai being aimed at Naruko. Hinata turns and deflects a Jyuken strike aimed at her heart. She had seen her cousin moving into position a while ago. She fires back with one of her own that he also deflects. Hinata quickly finds herself pressed against a wall as she blocks both kunai and Jyuken strikes at the same time.

"Sasuke, Lee is trying to move past you."

"On it!" He turns and dashes toward the older boy. Blocking his strike that was aimed at Naruko's temple. "Wow you pack a punch." His block comes just on time too as she finishes her hand seals.

"Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu." Lee and Tenten stop moving at the same time both falling prey to the Genjutsu. Sasuke holds a kunai up to Lee's throat. Gai appears and takes him, knowing that his student wouldn't be able to break the Genjutsu.

"Naruko why are you taking longer to cast Jutsu now? You cast that almost instantly before."

"It's the new resistance seals, they make my whole body have to work harder to move properly and that includes my hands." Sasuke nods, that made sense and things worked out for now. "Now, do you think you can handle Tenten while I help Hina-chan with Neji?" The raven haired boy nods and rushes off towards the girl who had just broken the Genjutsu.

"It's no use Hinata-sama even in a two on three a team comprised of two failures will never be able to match me, it is fated for you to lose. And you are in my range of Divination." Of course he was also in hers and she easily blocked each of his strikes.

"Neji-niisan, you do realize I could activate your seal at any time and win this instantly correct? If I truly cared about winning this fight it would already be over." It was the truth, she had already learned how to activate the caged bird seal, she just never did so because she thought it an unnecessarily cruelty.

"You refuse to activate the seal because you are too weak to do so. To be a real ninja." The boy was delusional, she had graduated Rookie of the Year just as he had and she had already started to learn the Kaiten. If he thought she was weak then he was sorely mistaken. The boy turns on a dime and blocks Naruko's kick. Just as Hinata had seen him earlier he had seen her. "You cannot even fight me alone."

"It's not that I cannot, it's that we are ninja and ninja do not fight fair. That is what a real ninja would do. The only reason I don't activate your seal is because I have no interest in ruining your career." The boy sneers as he hears her throw his words back at him. He quickly finds he can't handle the two on one fight. And if his eyes are right, and they always are, then Tenten is being pushed back by the lone Uchiha.

Well if he can't get the heiress then maybe he can harm the failure. He lashes out with a Jyuken strike aimed at her neck as fast as he can. It likely wouldn't connect normally but he had heard her say she is still sluggish due to the resistance seal. He finds himself being pulled back by Gai-sensei. "You lost Neji." What?! He looks back and sees that in his haste to eliminate the redhead he had allowed the heiress to nearly land a strike on his heart. "You got frustrated and stopped paying attention to your enemies. More than that you underestimated them. It was most unyouthful of you."

Tenten was fairly sure she couldn't win from this position. She was ill suited to three on ones. She had been fending the Uchiha off with a sword but the boy was surprisingly fast. Interestingly he did seem weirdly focused on keeping it away from his right hand. Then something strange happens. The field seems to be over come in a whirl of flower petals and she can only barely see the Uchiha through it. She never saw the Jyuken strikes that cut her connection to her arms and legs.

"Alright Team 7 wins. That was excellent work you three, it's not easy to defeat someone older and more experienced than you. But don't let this go to your head. You would have been in a lot more trouble if Lee hadn't fallen to Naruko's Genjutsu." She wasn't going to lectures Gai's genin on what they did right and wrong, she'd leave that to the man himself. He is more familiar with their strengths and weaknesses anyways. "Thanks for agreeing to coming here today Gai, I think this has helped my genin greatly." The man nods and gathers up his own team. They'd discuss it more at their own training ground.

"Now you three, before I explain what you did wrong during the fight I want to know if any of you can tell me."

"We shouldn't have grouped up in the beginning. That would have been much more deadly had we been against a team with an area of effect attack. The closest they had to that was Tenten's kunai storm and that was only barely an AOE." Kurenai nods, her redheaded student was completely right.

"We also shouldn't have vocalized our plan about Naruko's Genjutsu or should have used a code word for protect her. They could hear her ask for time so they knew they needed to target her."

"Very true Sasuke, that's an issue we'll be working on when we do team training on Monday. It's important for you guys to essentially develop your own code between each other so that enemy nin will have a harder time knowing how to infiltrate the group. My team and I still have code we use to this day. Even though all of us have long since made Jonin." Of course Yugao wasn't in the public eye anymore, most the time, she was an Anbu captain for a reason.

"When Naru-chan and I were both fighting Neji-niisan we stood side by side rather than going to either side of him. While the Byakugan would have let him see both of us he still would have had to work harder to actually block both of us."

"Another good point, unless you are doing a combination Jutsu or something similar you three should always be opposite each other with an enemy in the middle, assuming you're fighting only one. It will make fighting much harder and much more tiring for your opponent. And when that happens they are more likely to make mistakes. We'll discuss individual problems during your one on ones, that being said Sasuke you're up first today."

* * *

Naruko had her hair down for the first time in several days. She loved the hair senbon Hina-chan had given her but she hadn't realized just how much she enjoys letting her hair fall loose. She had spent the morning getting ready for their date. She wasn't in her usual ninja clothes. She didn't have mesh armor underneath her dress, which went down to her knees unlike her battle dress which went to her mid thighs. She was even wearing a dark black eye liner and matte red lipstick. She didn't usually dress up for their dates, but this was their first date in a while and she wanted to. She had also spent last night making the lunches for their picnic. It was a great time of year for the picnic anyways. It was currently early to mid spring and the flowers around Konoha were all starting to bloom. The weather was perfect.

Three sharp knocks on the door is enough to let the redhead to know her girlfriend has arrived. She only has to call, "Enter!" For Hina-chan to know she's not walking around the apartment naked at the moment. Her girlfriend was so cute sometimes, more like all the time, she was weirdly intent on giving her privacy when she's nude. Naruko didn't really get it, she knew the girl wanted to look but for some reason she just refused to. Hina-chan walks through the door and Naruko smiles (she had given Hina-chan a key to her apartment years ago). "You look amazing, well more than usual."

The other girl was also in a dress, it was much rarer for the lavender themed girl to do so. She notices her girlfriend wasn't wearing makeup, but that's okay. She always thought Hina-chan had this ethereal beauty about her. The taller girl was wearing a lavender colored dress with the Hyuuga clan crest emblazoned on the back. It contrasted nicely with Naruko's own navy blue dress with an orange obi.

"You look gorgeous as always." The white eyed girl walked up and gave her a quick peck on the lips. "You ready to go?"

"Yep, just let me grab the basket and we can be on our way." It wasn't like it was far, just a few steps away. She returns quickly and they make their way out of the apartment, with Naruko locking the door behind her. "So where did you have in mind for the picnic?" Hina-chan only ever asked for picnics when she wanted to enjoy a specific part of Konoha's scenery.

"Do you remember that waterfall, behind the Hokage Monument, we found a few years back? I was thinking with weather like this it would be great."

"Maybe I should have grabbed a swimsuit, sounds like we should go for a swim after we eat."

"You could always skinny dip, I can pretty easily make sure there are no voyeurs."

"Yeah but then you might pass out from a nosebleed." Naruko had only seen Hina-chan do that a few times but they always happened when the other girl caught her in the nude. She didn't really get it. Can't she see through her clothes anyways when she uses the Byakugan? Though it does make her happy her girlfriend finds her so attractive. She never cared much about her looks but it still created a warm sensation in her stomach.

"Fair point. And don't worry I thought you might want to swim so I brought swimsuits for the two of us in a sealing scroll." Even if they weren't on duty they were still ninja, and still had access to the equipment that made life so much easier.

"Ah I see, you wanted to pick out a swimsuit for me to wear and show off for you." Naru-chan's tone was teasing even if Hinata had to admit she'd be lying if she said she didn't think the swimsuit would look good on her. She had long since gotten the other girls sizes seeing as she often bought clothing for the girl as gifts, even before they were dating.

"Naru-chan if anyone can show off between the two of us it's me." Naruko had to concede that point. While Hina-chan may have liked the fact that Naruko had a smaller physique the other girl, undeniably, was already starting to fill out like a grown woman. But she guesses that's just puberty, they're all growing and developing differently. It's not like she really cared to have a curvy figure. In fact the only reason she really cared about her body image was because she wanted her girlfriend to like her figure. Otherwise she would probably wear baggy clothes all the time. Well she still likes dresses. They're just so fluttery.

The two girls continue to make idle chatter until they reach the waterfall. And the river it flows into. It was right on the edge of Konoha's northern border. The wall was only half an hour north. The waterfall was as beautiful as they remember it. It's water was crystal blue that shimmered nicely in the late morning light.

They sit down next to the bank of the river, the waterfall roaring quietly in the background. Naruko had prepared them sandwiches along with packing in fruits and a thermos full of green tea. She had also packed a surprise for Hina-chan.

Hinata for her part unseals a blanket for them to sit, or lay, down on. She can't help but notice something extra nice smelling coming from the picnic basket. Naru-chan noticing her expression says.

"I don't think I have it perfect yet but I thought you might enjoy the fruits of my labor." And with that she pulls out a cinnamon roll. "I've been practicing making them since I know they're your favorite." She was going to keep explaining but her Hinata interrupted her girlfriend to maul her lips with her own. What can she say, she just made her day.

Naruko breaks away gasping for breath. "I thought you would be happy but not that happy."

"My favorite person made my favorite food, and by the sounds of it with a lot of effort. Of course I'd be more than happy." Hinata moves in to kiss her again but Naru-chan says.

"Well if you want to eat it while it's still warm then you'll have put off kissing me for a bit." Hinata looks torn. On the one hand Naru-chan's oh so soft lips were calling her own. But on the other hand the wonder that is her girlfriends home cooked cinnamon roll was begging to be eaten while it was still warm. She sighs and goes for the roll, eliciting a laugh from the redhead. Her moan of delight as she tastes the food is enough to make Naru-chan blush. And the girl says she still doesn't have it perfected? She could only imagine how amazing that would be.

The two girls fall into a comfortable silence while eating. It's not that they didn't usually talk while eating or on dates, but they were just enjoying the sounds of the waterfall and each others company. And that was enough. Meal finished they decide to go for that swim.

Naru-chan didn't even have to ask if Hinata would make sure no one was spying on them, the girl was doing so the moment they decided to get changed. Though she did have to focus all her attention any place other than the naked girl she could still see behind her. It was easier when she focused on getting changed herself.

Naruko looked down at the bathing suit Hina-chan had pulled out of the scroll for her. It was a red one piece swimsuit that was otherwise fairly plain. Though she did notice it showed a bit of her stomach and back. She quickly puts it on and finds it fits her quite nicely. When she turns around she finds her girlfriend in a bikini, which was surprisingly black (a color she hadn't seen Hina-chan wear very much). It contrasted rather nicely with the girls pale skin. Her hair was also hanging loose for once, instead of the usual braid that went down to her shoulders. It seems they were both letting their hair down today.

"You ready Hina-chan?" Naruko asks with a gleam in her eyes. Speaking of she just realized her make up is going to run, but that's not a big deal to her.

"Naru-" She can't even finish her thought as the other girl scoops her up and dives into the river with both of them. Well she called it a river, it'd be more apt to call it a stream. Just deep enough for them to swim through but not moving so fast that they would be washed down stream. Naru-chan let's her go underwater and she rises up above the surface and levels an unimpressed stare at her girlfriend. Then she smiles and splashes the shorter girl.

They were here to play in the water, why would she be mad about getting in? Her thoughts are interrupted as a veritable wall of water comes rushing at her. Right her girlfriend wasn't wearing weights or resistance seals today, she was far stronger than usual. Well two can play at that game.

She performs a quick and imperfect Kaiten. She still didn't have it down enough to repel other people or Jutsu or even kunai, but she could at least repel a bunch of water that's not augmented by chakra. When she stops spinning she finds her girlfriends lips crashing into her own. She should take Naru-chan out more often this was great! She barely notices she's forcing it. The dark thoughts from the day before still lurking in her mind.

The two girls fall into a relaxing rhythm of just swimming around, playing, and making out. Every now and then Hinata would pulse her Byakugan just because she wanted to make sure this stays private. She never found anyone so she assumed it was fine.

It's about an hour later that the two girls get out of the water. They halfheartedly dry off then lay down on the blanket. It would be more accurate to say the two girls were cuddling, with Naruko resting her head on the other girls shoulder. She was trying to make conversation but Hina-chan wasn't responding.

"What's wrong Hina-chan?" It wasn't the most tactful way to go about it but the redhead wasn't really known for her tact.

"I can't hide anything from you." Naruko doesn't say anything, she merely waits for the other girl to say what's on her mind. "I overheard Otou-sama and the elders speaking the other day." Well not so much as overhearing but more like she was reading their lips and spying with her Byakugan. She didn't tell them her true range for this exact reason. "They want to make me available to suitors when I become a chunin." Or when she turns sixteen, but they saw her talent and figured that chunin would come sooner.

"So are you saying I should start formally courting you when you become a chunin?" Naruko didn't really see a problem with that, but she figured that wasn't the true problem.

"I certainly wouldn't mind, but more to the point they plan on making me end my, "dealings," with you." She says spitting the word 'dealings' like it's toxic. She knew they had only accepted her friendship with the redhead for the power the girl could provide as a "demon." But they had also figured out that since she won the majority of their spars the demon wasn't as useful as they thought. They knew of her relationship and just chose to act like it's some fling. It couldn't be a fling, this was how she felt and that was real. "According to them it wouldn't be proper for the heiress to be having an affair."

"Why can they not just let our relationship be?" Naruko didn't get it. It's not like they were breaking any laws and they loved each other.

"Because I'm the heiress and future head of the clan. Not only are we both women so we can't produce a future child to head the clan, but you are not a noble, a member of the clan, or someone of high status. So to them my marrying you would be worthless." They of course couldn't care less about her own happiness.

"Can you not just leave the clan?" Plenty of people cut ties to their family, why couldn't Hina-chan?

"No, the Hyuuga clan is the most powerful clan in Konoha. The only way I could leave is if I leave the village."

"Then lets just leave." They both knew Naruko had zero loyalty to the village, she only cared about a few people within, and stayed exclusively for them. She had lied to the Hokage's face when he asked if she was loyal. But what was she going to do? Tell the military dictator that the girl with a giant demon, that almost destroyed his village, sealed in her gut isn't loyal? That would go great.

The white eyed girl shakes her head. "As much as I would love to I can't, Otou-sama and Kaa-chan would both suffer for it." As would the Ichiraku family, who would likely go bankrupt if the two of them left. "Not to mention there would be hunter nin sent after us."

"Well what about if you become the clan head before getting married, can't you order the elders to back off? Now that she thought about it why wasn't Hiashi doing that?

"The elders have more power in the clan than they like to let on. Not only that but the only way that could work is if my parents both died a premature death." She loved her parents and that's the last thing she wanted.

"So then are we breaking up? Because it sounds like we're going to have to anyway." Naruko couldn't even blink before she finds herself pinned under the heiress. The other girl was looking at her fiercely.

"Absolutely not! Whether the elders like it or not you will be my wife, you got that Uzumaki!" Wow this was new, and kind of hot. But also really scary. Naruko nods meekly. Wait did Hina-chan just propose? And if so did she just accept? She figured the other girl would be more romantic about it. Well that's okay, she can't imagine marrying anyone else anyways.

Hinata realizes what she just did and blushes, but before she can justify herself Naruko asks. "So then how are we going to fix this problem?" Hinata still hadn't moved, what could she say, she was kind of enjoying having the older girl under her.

"The only thing I can think of is if I intentionally start losing publicly and more importantly to my little sister. If I throw my skills into question then so too will be the question of who the heiress should be."

"I don't think that will work, it will likely seem to abrupt, unless you intentionally avoid promotions for the next four years and degrade your skills in the public eye during that time." Well it was actually more like three years and eight months, but whose counting? "Not to mention the fact that a field promotion could ruin that."

Naru-chan was right, this plan wouldn't work. The redhead speaks up again. "What if we just assassinate them or frame them for committing treason?" That could work, but it would be dangerous, if it fails then they would both likely be put to death.

"How would we frame them for treason?" That would work better than assassination, as it would give her father the chance to finally remove the elders from power and make sure future ones can't control the clan from the shadows.

"I don't know yet, we'll have to figure something out." Maybe she could use Kaguya-san somehow. She had a pair of Byakugan as well and was apparently the demon that attacked the village. There's always a chance the clan knew about her. She says as much to her girlfriend.

"Wait you didn't tell me the woman had a pair of Byakugan."

"Oh, it must have slipped my mind." Hinata didn't know what to think. This makes things much more complicated. But this could work. The elders are required to have read all ancient clan texts, though some were oddly indecipherable to the Byakugan, and if this woman had the Byakugan then there is a chance they knew about her and the demon. It would take tremendous effort and this could still backfire horribly but this might just work. "Hey Hina-chan do you mind getting off me now, I kind of want to go back to cuddling." Oh yeah, she still had the other girl pinned. She grins and says.

"I've got a better idea." She captures the other girls lips and puts the issue behind her for now. In this moment she just wanted to think about the other girl and how much she loved her.

* * *

A month had passed since the two girls date. Hinata had taken to reading through all of the ancient texts, pouring over anything that matches the description of either the demon or the woman it stems from. So far she's been largely unsuccessful, but she had yet to attempt the indecipherable ones (she figured there had to be a secret to those), along with well over half of the ones that are readable.

The team had kept up their training. Hinata had quickly found that her skill in poison had gone up immensely, and much to her chagrin her resistance to poison had as well (there was only so many times she could be poisoned before it got annoying). She had also found out she had an affinity for both Katon and Raiton. She had been practicing Raiton as Sasuke was already proficient in Katon and it could potentially synergize with the Jyuken. That would require some experimentation. She, like everyone else on the team, had been taught Genjutsu, now knowing the jutsu her girlfriend was so fond of, Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu. While she had an affinity for the art thanks to her impressive chakra control she had found she didn't enjoy it much. But it was useful so she learned it.

For Sasuke he had found he spent the better part of his ninjutsu practice actually doing chakra control exercises. By the end of the month he had mastered both the tree walking exercise, and the water walking exercise. Once both of those were done he had been giving an exercise that saw him burning leaves over and over and over for the remainder of the month. He had just completed it by burning a leaf until it was ash. He saw the benefit when he found that his flames were much hotter than before. He had also learned Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu as Kurenai had made him aware of the fact that he could cast Genjutsu through the Sharingan. His appreciation for the art went up when he learned that. He had also found that by unlocking his Sharingan his ability to train properly in the Nagareken, or the flow fist, had gone up considerably. It was a style focused primarily on counters and speed, that used the Sharingan as a tool to predict and react to the opponents moves. He found once he started getting proper practice in Hinata was a little less difficult to face.

Naruko had a weird month. She had learned two more Genjutsu the first being the Magen: Kowaku no Kangen which was a genjutsu that was cast orally, it was more or less hypnosis as it made the victim more susceptible to the users will. The second genjutsu was Magen: Kokoni Arazu no Jutsu which placed a Genjutsu on the surroundings to create a false image. Not only that but she had progressed in her Kaa-chan's Taijutsu style as well. She only had the first two forms of each sub-style complete, and no where near mastered, but it was at least better than she had before. She still felt like she was wading through mud all the time thanks to the resistance seals, but she at least wasn't completely debilitated by it anymore.

The weird part came from how Kurenai-sensei had been acting. It was like she suddenly took a really keen interest in her personal life and it was kind of weirding her out. The older woman was usually so strict during training but then when they were alone she was a massive softy and the young girl didn't know what to think. She had also apparently felt the need to give her a bunch of money for no reason. Like she's talking hundreds of thousands of ryo just out of nowhere one day. For a girl that had lived in poverty most of her life it was a strange change to suddenly have more money than she knew what to do with. Apparently she had broken up with her boyfriend of ten years as well. She didn't really get why the woman was happy about that. Naruko would be losing her mind if she broke up with Hina-chan.

The weirdness aside she had also mastered the Suiton exercise she'd been given. She had only just finished it however and hadn't gotten a chance to learn any jutsu for it yet. Oh and she finally started learning Fuinjutsu. Kurenai was only high chunin in the art but it was enough for her to learn how to make her own sealing and explosive tags. Kurenai-sensei had told her it would likely take a while for her to learn but she seemed to just have an instinctive understanding of the art.

Kurenai had a busy month. Gai had done as asked and found the culprit. Much to her dismay it had turned out to be Asuma. The man had secretly been pocketing the vast majority of her money. She had gone through many emotions at that. First she felt angry, how could he do that to her?! Then she felt dirty, she had given him so many of her firsts. Then she felt stupid, she had been too blindly in love to think about how he treated Naruko when the girl was young, she was 16 and far more naive back then. And by the time she would have been old enough to notice those days were far behind her. She had sorted out her feelings and then went to the Hokage with Gai as a witness. He had seemed genuinely surprised by the information. But he knew Gai was nothing if not honest with him. He still had to check this of course. It was easy to have his Anbu break into Naruko's apartment and find the records of how much she'd been getting. He knew first hand the amount the woman had been giving and as it turned much of the money had been skimped. His son would have been better off if he had just left the original documentation rather than forging new ones for the girl.

He may not have wanted to punish his son, but this case could quickly escalate into a case about ninja rights and that would be to much of a headache to deal with. So he ordered his son to pay back the woman in full along with interest as if he'd taken out a loan every week from the Bank of Konoha for the past several years. Suffice to say his son lost a lot of money very quickly.

Kurenai had of course broken up with the man and she had wanted to see him punished further. But he was an elite jonin and had been given the privilege of not being sent to prison for his crimes (because they did not directly betray Konoha in any meaningful way). If he was any rank lower, then that would be the case. In some ways it would be argued that his punishment went beyond the payment. Word had spread quickly and by the end of the day every high ranking ninja in the village knew of what he had done. While they may not all like Naruko stealing from another elite was unacceptable. For all intents he had been forced into isolation. Reputation was everything in a ninja village, odd given that secrecy was the name of their game, and his had gone as low as it would go without him defecting outright.

When it was all said and done Kurenai had actually felt pretty good. It was like a weight was off her shoulders for the first time in years. Maybe she'd even accept Anko and Hana's offer for that threesome. Probably not because she wasn't gay or even bi but she didn't have a boyfriend chaining her down and the freedom felt kind of nice.

Her male genin was currently complaining, surprisingly loudly, about the cat struggling in his arms. His face had several angry red marks across it from scratches delivered by the creature. The other two looked on amused. Well really Hinata did, Naruko was being forced to stand about ten yards away from them so the cat wouldn't have a panic attack.

They delivered the cat to the mission desk and were surprised to find both the Hokage and Iruka there. He rarely visits the desk himself, usually just having his secretary bring him documents. Well he was right there so she'd just report to him.

"The Tora mission has been completed Hokage-sama." He doesn't even have to say anything as an overweight noble, who had been waiting patiently for her cat, runs up to them and grabs the it. She practically squeezes the poor thing to death.

"Oh Tora I'm so happy to see you're alright!" She nuzzles her face into the cat as she walks out of the building.

The Hokage speaks. "Excellent work Kurenai, don't suppose you'd like another mission? We have a bit to many D-ranks today." Hinata speaks up. Not wanting to even be offered the cat mission again as she could already hear the noble crying about it running off once more.

"Kurenai-sensei, Hokage-sama, would it be alright for us to take on a C-rank?" Iruka looks like he wants to tell them not to but Kurenai speaks.

"Finally one of you asked."

"What?" Sasuke asks dumbly, he thought they had to wait, that's what they learned in the academy.

"A genin team is not given a C-rank until a member of the team requests it. It's because as a ninja while you will be assigned missions, you will also be expected to actively try and take on missions. It's another reason we give frustrating D-ranks, to encourage you to seek higher level and better paying missions." The trio nods, well that made sense, even if it did make them feel stupid.

"Well if Kurenai is alright with it then I have a mission you three can take. Please send Tazuna-san in."

* * *

A/N Not gonna lie that was probably the hardest time I've had writing a chapter so far. The main problem was the date. I personally haven't gone on one in so long that it felt really awkward trying to write one out and make it feel natural. But overall I think it turned out okay. In the future I might just make a new fic that is just one shots of their every day life, which would include dates like that. Of course important ones like this one would still be in here. Who knows maybe I will maybe I won't. The Hyuuga issue was one that had to get brought up eventually, just by the nature of them both being girls. As always I'll be interested to know what you all think. I'd also like to add that I actually like Asuma as a character a lot but for the sake of the fic I thought he would fit best. Also sorry to all you Tenten fans out there who might have felt insulted by me calling her bland, but I mean come on. So I have a question for you all. Would you prefer in regards to Jutsu that I start writing them in bold or underlined? And how about putting the translation immediately after? Personally I like putting it at the bottom more as I feel it reads more naturally that way, but if you all would rather I change it then I will. Anyways that's all for today until next time.

Jutsu List

Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu – Grand fireball jutsu

Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu – viewing hell technique

Magen: Kokoni Arazu no Jutsu – false surroundings technique

Magen: Kowaku no Kangen – Cajolery of Glamour

CM 11/2/2018


	8. Insults Are Normal For Sure

It only took a few minutes for Tazuna to come stumbling into the mission office drunkenly. The mans face was flushed and he was holding a bottle of sake. He looks around the room and spots the aged kage. "I'm glad you could make it Tazuna-san. This is the team that will be escorting and protecting you." The man gestures to four people. His eyes nearly pop as he sees the group. Well for two different reasons. The first is that it's mostly a bunch of kids. Why are they giving him kids, he asked for shinobi? The second reason was because the only adult in the group was a total hottie.

"These brats don't look like much. Especially the super tiny redhead over there. Of course the woman looks like she could protect me all night long." Three things happen all at once.

Kurenai chokes back a gag. It's not the first time a client has hit on her, but he looks old enough to be her father and it's pretty disgusting.

Naruko starts to wonder if insulting her is just what people do, and the people in the village just take it farther because they know about the demon. She can't ponder this for long as she has to hold back her girlfriend from attacking the man. Hina-chan always got offended for her.

"I assure you Tazuna-san," Kurenai's words are a little forced as she addresses the man, "That my team is more than adequate in their ability to protect you." She wouldn't even take her team on a C-rank if she thought they couldn't handle it.

The man just grunts and says. "Whatever, I need to leave tomorrow morning. Don't be late," Then his tone turns perverse, "Of course I could always help you be on time, just stay at my place tonight."

"No thank you, My team and I will have to pack for the C-rank anyways. We'll see you tomorrow at 8am." The man grunts again and stumbles out of the room.

"Hey Kurenai-sensei do you have to deal with guys like that all the time?" It was Hinata who asked.

"If our clients are male and civilians, which they are most of the time, then yes." It was one of the worst parts about being a kunoichi. Because they just had to deal with it, Konoha went out of its way to appear nice and a kunoichi threatening her client would be unacceptable. "Now then, you three should go pack. I'd pack for two weeks or so." The three nod and as they were about to leave Naruko speaks up.

"Hey Sasuke, take this." She hands him a sealing scroll. The boy recognized it for what it was and gives his thanks. This is so much easier than carrying a backpack. After several long moments of thinking he looks at the two girls who he had spent so much time with over the past month.

"Naruko, Hinata, do you wanna have dinner at my place tonight, to celebrate our first C-rank?" That. . . Was surprisingly hard to ask. He hadn't invited anyone over in years, but these two girls had grown on him. They were sort of . . . Friends.

Hinata wraps her arms around Naruko's waist from behind and looks at him with a gleam in her eyes. "Sasuke are you trying to land both of us at once? Or are you secretly after my girlfriend and plan on stealing her from me?" Her tone was teasing and Naruko was squirming to get out of the other girls grip, well it looked fairly halfhearted.

Sasuke deadpans. "Hinata we both know if I was actually hitting on you and especially Naruko, then you'd already have me choking on my eyes. So do you two want to come over or not?" He was getting impatient and was trying to show he actually cares, at least a little. He so did not need to be teased for this.

"Sure, when should we head over?" Naruko chirps still squirming.

"Just come on over at 7." Hinata nods and walks off still carrying her squirming girlfriend. Sasuke truly wasn't sure what to think of those two. They were both incredibly powerful and he could practically feel himself getting stronger every time he faced them. They had also refused to let him brood whenever they were around. It was still refreshing to him a month later. Though he had begun to truly notice something. The villagers hated Naruko. They bore the same kind of hatred for her as he did for Itachi. He couldn't imagine why. Sure the girl was odd and more than a little naive, but she was surprisingly kind, and he's fairly certain that's a trait most people like. His thoughts on the redhead are interrupted by Kurenai-sensei, who was still there with him, speaking up.

"So am I not invited to this team dinner?"

"Do you want to spend your night hanging out with your genin?"

"You have no idea how much better that sounds then how I used to spend my nights." He didn't get it but he wasn't going to question it.

"Then see you tonight Kurenai-sensei." He didn't really mind, the other two probably wouldn't either. She nods and he heads home. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little excited.

* * *

The three women arrived at the Uchiha estate a few hours later. They hadn't done the usual training thanks to the mission tomorrow. They also weren't dressed up or anything like that. But they were all feeling relaxed. It was going to be a nice dinner as a team. Three sharp knocks from Kurenai is enough for Sasuke to come and open the door. Naruko and Hinata both blink, surprised to find the boy in casual clothes. He still had the Uchiha clan crest emblazoned on his back but other than that he was just in a regular T-shirt and shorts. The T-shirt was even yellow of all things. He wasn't wearing any shoes or ninja tape of any kind. It's not like they didn't think he owned casual clothes, they had simply never seen him wear them.

"You know if you keep staring I'm going to start thinking you like what you see. And we both know that's not the case." That snaps the two girls out of their train of thought. Hinata laughs and says.

"Become a woman and you might end up my type." Well not really.

"So you mean like Kurenai-sensei?" It was Naruko who spoke up. Thinking how they would both have black hair, pale skin, and, if Sasuke had his Sharingan active, red eyes too.

"Yeah, she's got legs for days. It's the only downside to you being so small, your legs don't just go on forever like hers." Naruko hadn't really thought about that but it was true, the older woman had amazing legs.

"I'm right here you know." Kurenai wasn't sure how to feel about how casually her genin were talking about her being Hinata's type. "And you know I'd have thought you'd prefer girls like Naruko anyways."

"Oh don't get me wrong, I love Naruko. And believe me her thighs are amazing. And I don't think I could ever find anyone as attractive as I find her. But that doesn't change the fact I can appreciate a nice pair of legs, which you have in spades." Kurenai looks at Naruko.

"And you're okay with knowing she looks at other women?"

"Yeah, I do it too so I don't really see the problem. It's not like we are hitting on other women. By the way in case you're curious I've got a bit of a thing for paler women and apparently Byakugan."

"So Hinata?" It was Sasuke who asked.

"Well she certainly fits that description, so does Hitomi or Kaguya." Kurenai knew who Hitomi was, Hinata's mother, but she had no idea who this Kaguya person is.

"I didn't know you thought Kaguya was attractive." Apparently Hinata knew who this woman was. She also didn't seem to care that her girlfriend basically just called her mom hot.

"That's because you've never seen her Hina-chan. She's got this otherworldly beauty to her. She's also the most intimidating person I've ever met." Just who was this woman.

"I'm not familiar with this Kaguya person, what is she like? Or rather who exactly is she?"

"Well she told me she's a goddess, and the mother of chakra. But that seems a little outlandish." She wasn't ready to tell them about the woman's connection to the demon, not with Sasuke right there. The Juubi as Kaguya called it. "As for what she's like, well. She's really tall, just under 7 feet. And she's got crazy long hair, it goes all the way down past her feet and drags on the floor. Oh and it's white. Then of course she's got a pair of Byakugan eyes. Oh and horns."

"Are you sure you didn't dream this woman up?" Sasuke had to admit that description sounded outlandish.

Well this left an opportunity to let Kurenai-sensei know about the connection to the Juubi without telling Sasuke. "Naw, I met her like a month ago." She hadn't tried talking to the woman since then. She still wanted to know who that Kagura person is.

Kurenai had a sinking feeling in her gut that this person was real. About a month ago was when Naruko was first trying to use her kekkei genkai. Back then her hair had turned white. Maybe she was jumping the gun, and this woman was some secret Hyuuga elder or something. But her gut told her to be wary for future developments with this woman. "Did the woman talk to you about anything?"

"Well yeah, she said I'm like her granddaughter oh and she asked me to die."

Hinata speaks up now. "Wait you never told me that either."

"Oh, I guess I got to distracted by the thing with the lullaby, which by the way Kurenai-sensei you still haven't told me what that's about."

Hinata continues pressing. "Well what exactly did she say about her granddaughter?"

"Well she called me by her name, and then said I was of similar spirit." Well that wasn't to bad. Though Kurenai was worried, if this woman existed inside Naruko how could she have a granddaughter, or really any family? She didn't like the sound of that.

"What was her name?"

"Kagura." Hinata and Sasuke both feel something shake their beings. Like a deeply embedded sorrow. Neither was aware that the other felt it but it was enough to leave their hearts racing. Just who was this Kagura woman? Kurenai was looking at her genin in concern, they both went quiet and somber all at once. Maybe Kagura was the name of some woman that had caused a feud between the two clans. "So can we start eating or are we going to keep talking about this?" Suffice to say the redhead was getting more impatient as she got hungry.

It's enough to snap the other two out of their funk and Sasuke nods, ushering them towards his dining room. "Sure, I'm no master chef but I've at least learned." He had to thanks as a result of being on his own for the past five years. They disagreed with his modesty as they eat the meal and Kurenai speaks up.

"You know the ladies will be all over you in the future once they find out you can cook."

"Then this will have to stay between the four of us, because I'm already swarmed by fan girls as it is." He was still hounded by those vultures. He didn't need to make it worse.

"Fair enough, team I order you to secrecy for the sake of our male teammate."

The two girls chorus, "Yes Kurenai-sensei!" Then break into giggles.

"Hey Naruko."

"Yeah Sasuke?"

"It may be a bit blunt, but why do most people in the village hate you?"

Kurenai and Hinata both tense up at his question, ready to deflect for the redhead. She responds before they can. "I know why, but I can't tell you at the moment. Not because I don't trust you, but we're about to go on a mission, and the knowledge might hamper your ability to perform properly. So when we get back I'll explain. Okay?"

"Deal."

Kurenai and Hinata breathe a sigh of relief. That conversation was a headache waiting to happen.

After that the rest of the night goes by in relative peace as the group relaxes and falls into easy conversation. Sasuke never noticed just how much he was enjoying himself. Nor did he notice the crow that was watching them intently. And he certainly never noticed the spinning Sharingan in the crows eyes.

* * *

The next morning the group of four met at the gate right at the appointed time. They were greeted by the disgruntled bridge builder. "I've been waiting super long."

"We arrived right at the appointed time Tazuna-san, it was your choice to be early." The man grumbles and takes a swig of his sake.

"Whatever let's get going, Wave is super far from here." It really wasn't it was only off the coast of Fire country. Which was still a long travel for a civilian but it's not that far relatively speaking. The man still wasn't feeling confident in the ninja hired to escort him, but he couldn't do anything about it.

"Alright team we'll be moving in a diamond formation, Hinata you will be taking point with the Byakugan. Sasuke and Naruko you're on the sides, I'll take the back."

"I bet you take it from the back too."

"Tazuna-san while I cannot force you to stop with the comments, I'd ask you to refrain from being so crude." She was already sick of this client. Well if nothing else she can use it as lesson in being patient with clients, no matter how much she might dislike them. "Now then, let's move out."

With that the group takes off toward wave. It was a nice day, if a bit hot and overall made excellent travel weather. It hadn't rained in a few weeks so the ground was dry and easy to travel along. The genin were quietly passing a ball between themselves. None of them were looking at one another or acknowledging the fact that the ball was there. They simply caught it when it came near them and tossed it to one of the others. Tazuna thought it was more than a little weird. The hottie with a body speaks up.

"Naruko it slipped my mind earlier, but go ahead and deactivate your resistance seals. Every little bit of speed could matter on a mission, so I'd rather you have them off now." The redhead nods and brings a hand up to her hair stick. He didn't really get it but whatever that must be ninja stuff.

Well he was curious so might as well ask. "So what exactly was that supposed to do?"

"I have something called a seal on the charm in my hair senbon." How was it a hair senbon and not just a regular hair stick? "It makes it feel like I'm wading through mud when it's active. So when I turn it off I'm faster. I use chakra to turn it on and off." He didn't truly get it, but he nods anyways. It sounded like magic to him but it was nothing if not interesting.

"So you have super speed now our something?"

"More or less."

Well that's not something you hear everyday. She probably still wouldn't help much, she was much to small. But it was still interesting. So he turns to the boy on the team. "So what's your superpower?"

"I can see things in slow motion and breathe fire." Okay now they were just fuckin' with him. It's one thing to say they can run super fast. He had kinda seen that in action during his stay in the village. But that was straight magic

"And I don't suppose the girl up front has X-ray vision or something."

"That's actually more or less correct." Wait what? No they had to be fucking with him. Maybe they were still mad about the comment to the woman. Whatever let them be petty.

He didn't notice that the team had stopped throwing the ball as they passed by a puddle. He didn't notice that two figures rose from said puddle and wrapped up the woman. He did however hear the sickening squelch of someone being torn to shreds. He turned on time to see the redhead blink out of his vision and reappear with her foot embedded in the stomach of one of the assassins.

The other one was yanked back as his comrade was shot backwards from the force of the kick. He disconnected the chain before he could be pulled back and was met with spinning red eyes. Suddenly he found himself staring down the Mizukage's right hand man. The man was ripping the arms off his oldest brother and beating him to death with them. The man had turned toward his younger brother and started stalking toward him. The assassin watched helpless as the man, no the demon, did so. He was screaming at his body to move but it just wouldn't. Think, why was this happening why couldn't he move!

The answer revealed itself to him as the Genjutsu broke and he found himself tied up next to his surviving brother. He was being looked down at by the jonin he could have sworn he killed. She spoke. "Would you like me to extract info from you the easy way, the hard way, or the very hard way?"

"Fuck off you dumb bitch."

"The very hard way it is. Do you want to know what will hurt you worse than me cutting off your fingers?" She didn't give him a chance to answer as she continues. "Cutting off your brothers fingers. Isn't that right Meizu, missing nin of Kiri? According to the Bingo book you're a B-rank ninja wanted for trying to assassinate the Mizukage only to be stopped by her Jonin commander. You and your two brothers. One of whom died in the process. So you fled for yours and your remaining brothers life. It'd be a shame if her were to be crippled because you refused to talk." The assassin remains silent and she does as promised, cutting off the index finger of his brother. The pain seemed to jolt the younger brother awake as he screams out. "The sooner you talk the sooner your brother stops suffering." He couldn't even respond before another finger was cut off and an ear piercing scream ripped through his brothers throat.

The man broke quickly. "Alright! Alright! Dammit I'll talk! Just stop already!" Why did he always get stuck being a lapdog to some bitchy woman? First the Mizukage, then the bitch Gato hired. Now this woman.

"You should have just done so earlier. Now then, who hired you."

"The shipping magnate Gato."

"Why did he hire you?"

"He wanted me to assassinate the bridge builder."

"Why?"

"The man is some kind of threat to his business after Gato took over the country."

"Who else is working with you?"

"Some bitch. I don't know her name."

"I see, is there anything else I should know."

"Yeah your lips look like they were made for sucking cock."

"Glad to know you'll be enjoying your time in Konoha's T&I." With that Kurenai injected him with a poison that would keep him unconscious until given the antidote. Something that the Konoha T&I department had in spades. She quickly did the same with the other brother not having a use for him. She turns and walks towards Tazuna. "You lied. This mission is at least B-rank if not higher." She also notices out of the corner of her eye her genin were shooting her weird looks.

They had forgotten just how scary she is when she's mad. But that's probably part of what makes her a successful elite jonin.

"I'm super sorry! My country could only afford a C-rank it was our only hope. Please you've gotta help us!"

"You know if you wanted to endear yourself to us maybe you shouldn't have insulted my genin and spent your time sexually harassing me." She could leave this fool to rot and no one would blame her.

"I'm sorry, please if you all leave now I'll probably be killed and then my daughter and grandson will cry." Of course the ass had a family waiting for him. They always do.

"Kurenai-sensei if nothing else wouldn't making a country indebted to us be worth more than a C-rank?" Hinata was right, the actually monetary worth that could end up being gained is closer to S-rank. But the level is more than most genin could handle. Though on other hand her genin did just take out two B-rank missing nin with little trouble. She'd here them out.

"Well what do you three want to do?"

"I think we should help them." Hinata didn't really care, but the small country could be useful in the future if she and Naru-chan end up defecting.

"I'm in agreement with Hinata." He had a chance to fight even stronger opponents, he could feel his excitement welling up.

"I don't particularly care, so if the other two are up for it then so am I." Well the votes were in.

"Alright we'll continue the mission. But Tazuna-san if I hear one thing I don't like from you. Be it insulting my genin or being crude towards me then we will turn around and your people will rot. Not only that but I need to know exactly what's going on." She gives him time to explain while she leaves an encrypted note for the Hokage with the Demon Brothers.

The man nods vigorously and says. "Yes of course! Thank you so much!" Then his expression becomes somber. "Gato arrived in our country two years ago. At first it had seemed like a wealthy business man was simply interested in expanding into the country. The people didn't particularly mind or care. We had all just figured that maybe we'd get some better roads with the taxes the Daimyo could levy off him. That was about it. Then he bought up all the ports. And in case you don't realize. For an island nation like wave, the person who controls the ports controls the country. That's when he started to hire bandits to collect taxes from the people. It only took a little while before the entire country fell under his control. Ever since he's been robbing us blind and using our ports to smuggle opium across the Elemental Nations."

"Where's the Daimyo in all this?" Hinata's tone was one of confusion.

"He went missing not long after Gato showed up, we all assume he was killed by the man." The man continues his previous train of thought. "That's why I'm building my bridge. Once it connects us to the mainland we won't be totally dependent on the ports anymore."

* * *

Hiruzen had suspicions about Tazuna's trickery. It was confirmed when a patrol of Anbu had picked up the Demon Brothers and an encrypted note from Kurenai. He didn't send a team after them. He had sent that team intentionally. Every Team 7 of the past had always been tempered by the fires of combat and the sorrows of loss, this one would be no different. The team had important village resources on it, but holding back said resources from growing only hurt Konoha.

If the team members struggled then they would succeed. Just as the Uchiha had found talent after his family died and the Uzumaki found drive from wanting to push out abuse. The Hyuuga had found her own drive as a result of her desire to protect. They may hate him for what he's done. But some day they will see that what he does is for both their own good and the good of the village.

Kurenai was a similar case. He had to force her away from the girl. Her talent was going to waste raising the child. She had stagnated for three years and only grown stronger once the redhead was out of her life. She would have already been S-rank if she didn't waste time raising a child that wasn't even her own. But of course those who he helped never saw it that way. They always saw him as trying to ruin their lives. Can't they tell he loves them as he does his own family. For every leaf on the great tree is connected by the mighty branches that hold them aloft. Just as those branches are supported by the trunk and the roots.

His thoughts turn to his eldest son. The boy had started to focus all his attention on his team. He had nothing left but them. He knew his son would be unable to resist the money Kurenai was sending Naruko. It's why he chose him to deliver it. Everything he did he did for Konoha. He had secured the strength of another team. Even if it meant sacrificing his own son. Yes they might hate him, but he was doing what was right for everybody. All was well in his vision of the leaf. The mighty tree would continue to stand strong.

* * *

The genin were gaping. This was the most impressive thing they had ever seen. The bridge was so large and went so far into the distance that they couldn't even see the end of it. It had just come into view from the tiny boat they were riding on. They turn towards Tazuna. He quietly says.

"I'm not a master bridge builder for nothing." They nod dumbly. Many sited the Hokage monument as being the most impressive thing in the Elemental Nations, mostly Konoha residents, but this outclassed it by far. This is the type of thing that would go down in history as a feat of human ingenuity. Suffice to say the kids were impressed.

The rest of the boat ride goes by in silence. Normally the group would make chatter but they are going out of their way to make sure they're as stealthy as possible. Hinata is still observing the surroundings with her Byakugan but so far she can't spot anything. It doesn't take long for them to arrive on shore.

It was misty on the small island. "Hinata does the mist have chakra?" They had been against missing nin from Kiri earlier so there was a fair chance that the mist might have been caused by another missing nin from Kiri.

"No Kurenai-sensei, this is normal mist." No matter how hard she looked at it she couldn't find even trace amounts of chakra so it had to be.

"It gets pretty misty in the spring here." Tazuna adds helpfully. Then he goes on to say, "It will probably clear up soon."

"I see." That's annoying, that makes it so much easier for their enemies to hide. She wasn't sure if there would be multiple or just the woman she was told about.

As they walk Hinata was noticing something increasingly odd. At first she thought it was her imagination, but now she was sure of it. "Kurenai there seems to be random traces of chakra that are increasing in regularity."

"Everyone be on your guard. We don't know what kind of Jutsu this is." She was tempted to have Hinata check but if it was some kind of trap Jutsu it could get the girl killed. So she had them continue as they are.

Naruko was having a weirdly hard time focusing on what's going on. Ever since they had landed on the island nation she had felt a weird pull to the north-east. It was strange she almost couldn't describe the feeling. It felt sort of like. . . Like that feeling she gets when she hasn't seen the Ichiraku family in a while and suddenly she found herself on their street. It felt kind of like. . . Home. But she had never been here in her life. Yet no matter how she tried to reason it out she felt this pull. She wondered if Kurenai-sensei would let her investigate it.

Hinata was getting increasingly worried. She was noticing more and more of these chakra traces. That had her worried but what worried her more was her girlfriend. The girl was getting more spaced out by the second and she was slowly but surely deviating from the group. Hinata checked Naru-chan's chakra system but found no irregularities in it so she's not under the influence of a Genjutsu. She didn't know what was going on and she didn't like it. "Tazuna-san how far are we from your house?"

"About an hour."

"Naruko!" Hinata hisses at the redhead. She had started to actually wander off. It seemed her words were enough to snap her out of her funk for the moment. The older girl looks at her confused and says.

"Yeah, what?"

"What's going on? You were starting to wander off."

Naruko honestly hadn't noticed, she had just found herself moving towards the pull. "I don't know. I just feel this strange pull to the north-east." Kurenai looked at her. She knew her geography slightly better than the genin and knew what lay to the north-east. There were ruins to there on another island nearby. The ruins of the destroyed Uzumaki nation rest there. But how did her genin know about them? Konoha had stopped teaching about them in the academy as a result of the Sandaime's shame at not helping their allies. Some way to remember those who helped them.

"Do you think you can ignore it for now, I can't have you distracted while we're on a mission." It would endanger both the girls own life and the lives of everyone else on the team.

"I think so, but could we check it out when everything is said and done here?"

"I'll think about it." She would, but that's not the kind of thing she can consider when there is apparently increasing amounts of chakra from some other ninja here.

What the hell! No who the hell is that?! A woman suddenly appeared next to Naru-chan. Hinata didn't even have time to register she had entered her range before she was already there. The woman spoke before Hinata could even get a word out. "I think you should let her go." Her voice sounded distinctly bored and kind of monotone.

All the ninja whirl to look at the new voice. What they find is a tall woman, slightly taller than Kurenai, with light blue hair and a piercing through her bottom lip. She seemed to have an Origami flower in her hair. Perhaps most striking were her orange eyes that seemed to carry in them a distinctive melancholy. She had placed a hand on Naruko's shoulder. She wore an odd cloak. It was black and had red clouds scattered across it.

Kurenai quickly fell into an aggressive stance as did Sasuke and Hinata. Naruko, for her part, was just looking at the woman confused. Surely if she wanted her dead she would be already. "Who are you?"

"I'm Konan."

That wasn't really helpful. "Yes, but who are you?" She says emphasizing the who.

"I guess you could call me the leader of Amegakure. Well, one of the leaders."

"Last I heard Hanzo the Salamander was still the leader."

"We got rid of him years ago. And now that we're done rebuilding we're ready to enter back into the ninja world." Kurenai was immediately alarmed. Hanzo was one of the most powerful ninja to ever live. He was strong enough to take on all three Sannin at the height of their power and win. Hell he's the one who gave them their title. He is one of four, technically three, ninja in the history of the Elemental Nations to achieve the rank of SS. So if this woman had a hand in his downfall then she was at least S-rank. And what's more she's managed to avoid being put in any bingo book. She's dangerous, possibly the most dangerous kunoichi in the world, even more so than Senju Tsunade or the Mizukage.

"So why exactly are you here?"

"I was hired by Gato to kill him." She says pointing at the bridge builder. Naruko looks up at her and bluntly asks.

"Can you not?"

"Sure." It's not like she cared about Gato's goals this was just a job. It's no sweat off her back if the bridge builder gets to live. Of course she'd leave it for the people here to figure out their oppressor was dead. "If that is what you want, Naruko."

This woman was a threat that needed to be dealt with now! It's one thing to simply meet another nin on a mission. That happens all the time. But this woman knew Naruko's name without them having said it. But she needs confirmation. "Hinata did you see this woman when you called Naruko's name."

"No." The white eyed girl just connected the dots. The range of her Byakugan far out classed the range someone can hear whispers, not only that but she had only said Naru-chan not Naruko. So if this woman knew who Naruko is before hand that means she had been keeping tabs on her.

"That's what I was afraid of." The woman was watching them curiously. She wondered what they would do. She has no intention of harming the girl, but they don't know that and for all they know she might kill the girl here and now if they make any sudden moves. After several long seconds of them not moving she sighs and says.

"There's no reason to be afraid, I'm not going to hurt her." Of course they didn't buy it. It probably didn't help that she hadn't moved at all and still kept a hand on Naruko's shoulder. "If I release her are you going to attack me?"

"That depends will you willing come to Konoha's T&I department?"

All at once the chakra traces start to move. "I see, I guess we're fighting then." Hinata screams out.

"Everyone get down!" The three members of the team hit the deck with Sasuke pulling Tazuna down. Then out of seemingly nowhere thousands of white shuriken rip out of the ground all around them and fly overhead. They instantly disperse all of the mist that had gathered. Of course none of them went anywhere near Konan or Naruko. The redhead had gone completely still. She wasn't just going to sit by and let her teammates fight alone, even if she wasn't getting any bad feelings from the older woman. Slowly but surely her bangs begin to lift and red appears around her eyes. She drives an elbow backwards into the woman's sternum. The woman leaped away before the hit could connect.

"Sorry Konan-san, I've got nothing against you personally but you attacked my friends and my girlfriend so it looks like we've gotta fight." Konan shrugs. So long as the girl doesn't seem to hate her then she doesn't care.

"Well know that after this battle I have no intention of being your enemy." It was actually the exact opposite, she wanted to be the girls ally. "But I suppose this is as good a chance as any to test you."

"Why are you testing me?"

"You'll find out soon enough." Naruko shrugs accepting that answer.

Kurenai-sensei suddenly lunges forward pulling her sword from her scrolls. Konan mirrors her by forging a white sword out of nowhere. The woman seemed to be able to match Kurenai-sensei step for step, swing for swing. Where Kurenai-sensei had the skill the woman seemed to have the raw speed to make up for it. Naruko looks at one of the discarded shuriken and picks it up. It's made of. . . Paper? That's odd. So then is the sword also made of paper? That's an odd jutsu. She doesn't spend much longer pondering the nature of Konan's Jutsu as she begins to cast **Nise no Kankaku: Hyaku Saku Hana** (False Senses: One Hundred Blooming Flowers), she and her teammates are quickly obscured by the flowers.

It takes Konan less than half a second to break the Genjutsu but in that time she found Kurenai's sword being forced through her gut. Kurenai looks pleased only to realize the woman wasn't actually bleeding. She exploded into a mass of paper, some of which had become active explosive tags and other becoming shuriken. Kurenai is able to avoid the explosions and most of the shuriken but she does suffer a few shallow cuts and minor burns spread across her arms and legs, which she had used to block. The remaining paper reforms into Konan once more, who looked no worse for wear.

"That was an Excellent Genjutsu, Naruko. I'm sure in time you'll be quite the master." Of course she was S-rank for a reason and something so low level would never be a threat to her. But it was enough to pull one over on people similar to the redheads strength. The redhead dashes towards her in a burst of speed. The girl was certainly fast for her age. If Konan had to guess she was probably mid chunin in terms of speed. Well faster when she's using this odd technique that seemed to changer her hair and makeup. Konan easily blocks the kick that the small girl sends her way. She's forced to deflect a strike from an angry Hyuuga. She may be extremely resistant to things like swords but a Jyuken would still hurt.

The two girls jump back at the same time as a searingly hot fireball comes at her. She raises a single hand and a wall of paper moves to block the fire. She quickly finds her arms and body bound against a tree. Mokuton? No their sensei is known for her mastery of Genjutsu. She is freed from said Genjutsu when a Jyuken strike connects with her arm, disabling it. Those strikes did hurt, even if the white eyed girl is only a genin. She manages to jump back in time to avoid having her shoulder dislocated by a well placed ax kick from her redheaded target.

The girl could certainly be better but she had talent waiting to truly be brought to the surface. The jonin seemed to have picked up on Konan's newfound weak spot and had made a valiant attempt at cutting her arm off before she can use it again. But she was more than capable of of deflecting the other woman's sword strikes with her own. Konan had to dodge again as it seemed the genin weren't going to let the grown ups fight alone. It's unfortunate too as it put her right in the path of the red eyed woman's sword. It went straight through her arm and she bit back a wince.

Luckily it didn't cut off her arm and really it was fairly salvageable. It will just hurt like hell for the next few weeks. She can't stay like this. Once more she creates a storm of shuriken however, seeing as the Jonin would be able to dodge she aims them towards the genin.

"Naru-chan, Sasuke get down!" The two trust the white eyed girl and hit the ground. Hinata jumps above them and performs a now perfected Kaiten, successfully deflecting the entirety of the barrage from hitting her and her teammates. Well Konan certainly hadn't been expecting that. Though Kurenai didn't seem to either as she had started to move to help her two genin. Konan recovers from the surprise slightly faster and her sword goes through the other woman's dominant shoulder.

"It's over you can't fight like this. I have no interest in killing you so I suggest we stop here." Konan leaps away from the woman and disperses her sword. She gestures to the injured woman.

Hinata immediately rushes forward and starts to apply some of her healing salves. Once that's done she wraps the shoulder. It's only first aid but it should at least staunch the bleeding. When they make it to Tazuna's house she can do more.

"So did I pass your test?" Naruko was curious, even if she was still a little wary.

"Yes. So now then let me ask you, something in return. Do you truly care about Konoha?"

Naruko shrugs. "Not really." She answered honestly, she wanted to know where the woman was going with this.

"I thought as much, so let me ask you another question. Do you wish to be free of the abuse wrought upon you?"

"I'm already free, I have been since the day I passed my genin exam."

"But are you really? You still serve under a leader who would sacrifice you. And who you can't object to due to his absolute authority. So are you really free?"

"I guess not when you put it like that. Where are you going with this?" Konan smiles and walks right up to Naruko. She extends a hand and says.

"Would you like to come with me to Ame? To a better life, free of pain?" Hinata's breath hitches and she turns to look at her girlfriend. She had to know how would the girl answer.

Naruko looks at the ground for several moments in thought. It was a tempting offer, almost too good to be true. "How do I know this isn't some trick?"

"You can't. That's the truth of trusting others in the world of ninja. You can never know if you will be betrayed. So all I can give you is my word. I know who you are and what you hold. And I know you are destined for greatness. If you come with me you will never again face scorn for your burden. Never again will you be sacrificed for the sake of another. So, Naruko, won't you come with me?" Konan's voice was full of passion and earnestness. It was actually a little bit jarring compared to her earlier monotone and boredom. But it made for a convincing speech and once more Naruko found herself weighing her options. She looks up at the woman and takes a deep breath.

"I. . ."

* * *

A/N So a slightly shorter chapter than usual. So as always I'll be excited to know what everyone thought. So I keep meaning to ask you all, and keep forgetting to do so. Do you guys want to see me do any of the movies or filler arcs? I've already put a poll up on my profile so go ahead and check it out if you care one way or the other. The poll will be closed in about a week maybe two. So what did you all think of the fight with Konan? Originally I had planned to make it Kakuzu but then I thought about it and was like, there is no way he'd spare a bounty like Kurenai. And that directly conflicts with the current goal of getting Naruko to come willingly.

So as you might also be able to see I did decide to start putting Jutsu names in bold and follow them up with the translation immediately. The general reviewer consensus (I didn't even think about using polls until today) was that I should or that they don't really care. So I decided to go for it.

In other news updates will probably come a little slower in the future because I've been busy procrastinating irl stuff and now I've got to do it. In general I'd say the time between chapters will look more like 2-3 days instead of coming day after day. But who knows, if I get a random burst of lots of free time then you all might get back to back chapters.

Well that's pretty much it for this chapter.

CM 11/4/2018

PS I just remembered I wanted to thank everyone who has been reading, and following, and favoriting, and of course reviewing. You guys are so awesome At the time of me writing this I just hit 90 followers and 71 favorites. I also hit over 4000 views which just amazes me. I can feel the love. Thanks for being awesome!


	9. Love and Loss

"I. . ." Naruko took a deep breath. Then she looked at the extended hand and then up to the taller woman's face. "I can't, I still have things I have to do in Konoha. And people who I love living in the village." Naruko is surprised to see Konan give her a smile. The woman retracts her hand and says.

"You have a caring spirit, Uzumaki Naruko. I hope you never lose that." The woman turns and begins to walk out of the clearing. "I'll be sending a few associates of mine to meet you in a week. Take it as a challenge. They will be trying to kill your client. And they will be given instructions to not hold back against you or your team. I'll see you later." And just like that the woman was gone, the only trace of her leaving being the dirt that was kicked up.

The other four people remaining in the clearing were staring at the redhead. With varying levels of concern or shock. Hinata was of course the most concerned. Not because Naruko was considering the offer, she would be more surprised if the girl hadn't. No what concerned her is that there is apparently another village paying close enough attention to her to have a good idea of what's going on in her life. And they knew her secret in regards to the demon. Not only that but they had at least one S-class nin if not more, given that the woman had claimed to have help taking on Hanzo the Salamander. What if they decided to try and take her by force? Hinata wasn't strong enough to protect the other girl. She had to protect her, no matter the cost.

Tazuna was concerned for an entirely different reason. The woman had said she'd let him live and then turned around and said she would be sending people to kill him. Not only that but she was able to injure the Jonin he hired. This didn't bode well for him. And as a father he was feeling concern for the redheaded child, in a similar vein to how he feels for his own daughter and grandson. The woman had said the girl was being abused by her village. Wasn't Konoha supposed to be the village with the good guys? The ninja village with morals? That's how they marketed themselves. It's part of the reason he tried for Konoha instead of Kiri. Apparently that wasn't the case though. It would seem all ninja villages were just rotten.

Kurenai was worried. The girl she cared for so deeply was truly considering leaving the village. She had said no, but Kurenai knew better. The girl said she would stay for the people she loves in the village, and for these things she apparently has to do. But what happens if something were to happen to these people? If there was truly nothing binding her to the village? Would she just leave? Kurenai held a deep love for the village. Even if she hated her Hokage she did love the village from the bottom of her heart. But if her student, the child she had raised, betrayed them? Would she be able to do what's best for the village? She didn't know the answer to that question, nor did she want to think about it.

Sasuke was having mixed feelings. He truly liked his redheaded teammate. But he had an intense hatred for traitors. It was only natural. His brother had betrayed the village, and the clan, and ruined his life in the process. He had loved his brother and now the man was the object of his hatred. Would the same happen with Naruko? Would she betray his trust just as Itachi had? But on the other hand she had every reason to leave. She was hated by most of the village and apparently they had actually been abusing her. Would leaving to escape the pain truly be betraying them? He's not even sure he wouldn't have lashed out if he was in her position. Could he ever hate the girl who bore so much hatred and still managed to smile for the people close to her? He doesn't know the answer to that, and he certainly never wants to find out.

Hina-chan and Kurenai-sensei were the first to move. The two women both approached Naruko and started fretting. Naruko felt a faint blush rising to her cheeks. She was used to Hina-chan fretting over her but it was unusual for Kurenai-sensei to do so. The red eyed woman's tone was a weird mix of scolding and relief. "What were you thinking?! You watched an S-rank nin walk straight toward you and you just made casual conversation with her? You're lucky to be alive!"

Kurenai had been helpless to stop the woman from approaching Naruko. She had never felt more useless. Both for herself and for her genin. She knew she was close to reaching S-rank, but being close isn't enough. Her genin weren't the only ones who would need to get stronger. She couldn't stop the almost feral grin from coming to her face. She had to admit, the fire to get stronger was burning hotter in her than ever. Yes she'd get strong enough to make sure she never again have to watch helplessly as an S-rank nin approach her genin.

"Sorry Kurenai-sensei, but I could just tell she didn't want to hurt me." It's the truth she could feel the woman's energy thanks to her nature transformation. There was no truly ill intent behind Konan's words. Even when she said she'd be sending people to kill the bridge builder. The woman wanted them to succeed, or at least she wanted Naruko to.

Hinata calmed slightly at hearing that, she knew Naru-chan had a keen ability to judge people. If she said the blue haired woman wasn't going to hurt her, then that was it. Still she couldn't help but bristle. She couldn't even alert her team that the woman was there until she already had a hand on her girlfriend. Hinata knew she wasn't a match for an S-rank opponent yet. And she probably wouldn't be for a few years. But she now knew how her dream is being threatened. She swore years ago she'd always be there to protect Naru-chan. She had thought her greatest threat would be villagers. But now she knew better. So she'd simply have to be better. These people wanted to take her wife (well future wife) from her. "What are the things you have to do in Konoha?" She hadn't mentioned it before now and it made Hinata curious.

"Well I'll admit I've been more curious about my family since finding out about Kaa-chan. So I guess I'd like to know who my dad is. And I think the only people who would know are in Konoha. Plus I've got to help you with your clan problems. And I have friends who I have to help like helping Sasuke with killing Itachi. So I can't leave yet."

Sasuke was surprised to hear Naruko so blatantly say one of her goals is to help him. He appreciated the sentiment. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if he put his faith in her ability to help. Maybe he doesn't have to do this alone.

Kurenai didn't have a positive reaction to that. Because the girl openly said she does intend to leave, just not yet. She still didn't know if she could bring herself to stop the girl from finding her happiness elsewhere. What would Kushina-sensei have done? She knew the answer to that. She would wish her daughter good luck and let her know that she loved her no matter what. Kushina-sensei was just like that. It also probably would have helped that Kushina-sensei wasn't born in Konoha and still held loyalty to the destroyed Uzushiogakure. So in the end she held her tongue about the girls statement. She turns to Tazuna and says. "Let's head to your house, Tazuna-san. Sasuke when we get to the house I'm going to show you the hand seals for a jutsu I want you to perform on me." He was the only one on the team who could learn it fast enough for her to recover with it.

"Uh, sure It's not far from here." With that the group continues towards Tazuna's house, They'd discuss what to do over the course of the coming weeks when they arrive.

* * *

The group arrived at Tazuna's house about half an hour later. They would have arrived quicker but they didn't want to make any of Kurenai's wounds worse so they took their time. Upon arrival Tazuna knocked on the front door a few times. A minute later it slides open to reveal a young woman, maybe a little older than Kurenai. "Tou-san" She runs forward and wraps her father in a hug. He had left over a week ago to go to Konoha and bring back the ninja. She had been worried sick. After a moment she breaks the hug and looks at the ninja he brought.

They're just a bunch of kids. And an injured woman. The woman despite the injury to her shoulder carried herself with confidence. The two girls were just standing there, though the blind one seemed to be clinging possessively to the redhead. The only boy was standing next to them with a bored and somewhat angry look on his face. Though it didn't reach his eyes, that just seemed to be his natural expression.

Wait one of them is blind? Oh god they're doomed. Konoha had condemned them then. Forcing a smile onto her face she looks at the haggard group. "Come on in, I'm sure you could use the rest." The woman nods and they make their way inside.

Kurenai sits down on the couch in the small living room. "Sasuke, turn on your Sharingan." The boy nods and does just that. Seeing as he has it active Kurenai bites back a grimace as she works through the hand seals for **Sh** **ō** **sen Jutsu** (Mystical Palm Technique). "Be extremely careful. This is an A-rank healing technique that medic nin usually spend months learning. You don't truly have the chakra control for this, but if I leave the wound as is I could lose the use of my arm. If you aren't careful you could make it worse." The boy gulps at this. This was important and beyond his skill level. But his sensei was relying on him. So he had to do this and he had to do it right.

He needs control. He needs to channel the Yang chakra just right. Something strikes him. For some reason his instincts are telling him to use more of his Yin chakra instead. He decides to trust his gut. He takes a deep breath and goes through the hand seals. He brings his now glowing green hands up to his sensei's shoulder and is amazed as he watches her wound close, leaving only a faint scar. That. . . Wasn't as hard as she told him it would be. It seemed the use of Yin chakra just came to him.

Kurenai was surprised. The boy actually had an immense amount of talent for Medical Ninjutsu. He had executed the Jutsu almost perfectly. She was expecting her shoulder to heal slightly improperly but it feels completely normal. While a higher level medical ninja might have been able to prevent any scarring, he had done amazing for someone new to the art. She might have accidentally stumbled on a gold mine. "You know Sasuke you have a real talent for this. I think when we get back to Konoha we should focus on cultivating your talent."

Sasuke wasn't sure what to think about that. He wanted to be strong, strong enough to kill Itachi. But this was something the man had never pursued. Sasuke was unsure. He needed to be strong but why should he be like Itachi to do so? Where Itachi was a destroyer of lives what if Sasuke became a Saver of lives. He would still grow strong. But that sounded surprisingly appealing to him. He would have to think about this more in the future.

Suffice to say Tsunami had some of the doubts alleviated when she saw the magic the boy just worked. She was still confused about them sending a blind girl but maybe they weren't being completely condemned. Tazuna, having watched the battle earlier, knew that the ninja really did have some crazy magic going on and wasn't going to doubt their ability anymore. He slides his eyes over to the other two members of the team he hired. Those two seemed oddly close, kind of like how he used to be with his wife. Oh. He didn't like that much. But they were his saviors and he's not about to insult them. Even if he thinks it's unnatural. They're young and hopefully will learn from this mistake later.

The two girls weren't thinking about how their relationship would be considered. They were of course aware that it's probably not legal here. But to hell with the law, they're ninja why should they care. No instead they were just quietly enjoying each others company. After several moments Naruko speaks up. "So Kurenai-sensei, what's the plan for the week?"

"Training." Kurenai said with a teasing smile.

"Okay, but what kind of training?"

"The difficult kind."

"Not helpful." Naruko just wanted to know. Was that so hard?

"You'll be trying to use your kekkei genkai again. Sasuke we're going to try and get you more of the tomoe in you Sharingan. And Hinata we're going to be focusing on your speed. You may be fast but you're no where near fast enough when compared with the rest of the team." The three genin nod, though Sasuke is a little surprised to hear Naruko has a kekkei genkai, he hadn't been told about this yet. Though he'd put his money on that being a fault of Naruko forgetting to tell him just as she had with telling Hinata about this Kagura woman.

"I actually have an idea about how to use it but none of you are going to like it." Especially Hina-chan.

"What is it?"

"What if we have Sasuke use the **Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu** (Fire release: Grand fireball technique) at me. Kaguya said the ability would come instinctively." Before Kurenai can even respond Hinata cuts in.

"No. I refuse to let you just stand in front of a ball of fire that would sear off your skin." Hinata had her arms crossed and was glaring at her girlfriend. The redhead gave her a powerful pout. "I'm not budging on this Naru-chan. If this doesn't work you could die or be crippled."

"I'll be fine Hina-chan. But I don't think I'll be able to use it until I need to, and wouldn't it be better to do it in a more controlled environment?" It was a fair point and it could make a huge different in a week. She had also intensified her pout at the white eyed girl.

With a sigh Hinata broke and scooped Naru-chan up into a hug. "Alright Naru-chan, but you better not get hurt." Naru-chan nods and surprisingly doesn't squirm to get free as she usually does. Instead just cuddles into the taller girl.

"You know I am your sensei, aren't you supposed to ask me for permission?" The two girls look at her and she rolls her eyes. "You have it anyways, just be careful. And not today, we can train tomorrow, for now we just had a battle and everyone should rest." All three of her genin nod and relax. "Tazuna-san I'll guarding you while you work, even if I think we should be fine for the coming week." There was always a chance a bandit could get a bright idea after all.

The group relaxes after that, all of them seeing the merit of the proposal. Hinata had dragged Naru-chan into her lap. Once she does an expression of bliss crosses her face. There was just something so right about having her girlfriend in her lap. Maybe it was because she could get an excellent feeling of the other girls body and warmth. Naru-chan still wasn't squirming as she usually would. She just leans back against the white eyed girls chest. She knew this would bring some comfort to Hinata, who would never like the idea of the redhead being in danger. If it wasn't for the fact she wanted the redhead to be able to protect herself Hinata never would have supported the other girl becoming a ninja. Hinata couldn't help but lean forward and snuggle into her girlfriend. She was just so sweet and adorable.

It was to this scene that a young boy, maybe sever or eight, walked into the living room. The ninja figure this must be the grandson Tazuna mentioned. The boy gives them a look. One of abject hopelessness for a better tomorrow. Then he notices the two girls cuddling and gives them a weird look. Why were they practically trying to sink into one another? He didn't get it. "Oh Inari meet the ninja who're protecting your Jii-chan."

"What's the point, they're all going to die anyways."The boys tone matched his expression. He runs up to Tazuna and gives the man a hug, which is returned. "Welcome home Jii-chan."

Naru-chan was giving the boy a look, why was he bringing up the fate of all humans to inevitably die one day? Hinata seemed to notice her girlfriends shift in expression and quietly says, "He means we're going to die on the mission." Naru-chan's expression changes to one to realization as she nods. Hinata didn't let the boys statement affect her, she had a redhead to protect, and that wouldn't stop until they both died of old age.

Well they weren't going to die on this mission, they probably wouldn't even be maimed, not if Gato only has bandits. And the ninja Konan is sending probably won't be out to kill them, she seemed fairly intent on that much. Though it would still be better to aim to kill, just like Kurenai-sensei was teaching them.

Kurenai wasn't particularly put out by the kid. He was a civilian child and would likely never truly understand just how different ninjas are from civilians. And once again he was a child, and she would never allow herself to get angry at a child.

The only member of the team who truly seemed put out by the child was Sasuke. It was a direct insult to him and his ambition. But he held back because he knew the boy was a child. But he might not be able to keep his cool if the kid keeps that shit up. He decides to take a cue from his female teammates and just stay silent. Well the couple had started to quietly chat, but they were largely ignoring the boy.

* * *

And so the group found themselves gathered in a clearing early the next morning. Naruko was standing across from Sasuke. Kurenai was looking on suddenly feeling unsure of this idea. What if it fails and Naruko gets horribly burned? No. She had to have faith it would work. "You two can begin whenever you're ready, Hinata and I will not interfere." The two nod and Sasuke flies through the hand seals once more using **Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu** (Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique) **.** It heads straight for Naruko.

Absorb the chakra. Don't think about how to do it just do it. She reaches out with her hands to try and do so only to wince as the fireball passes over her. She's singed all over and has light burns. "Sasuke, don't hold back, if my instincts aren't going to tell me I'm in danger this won't work." Sasuke looks at her and with some hesitance he nods. He didn't want to hurt her, if this fails he would sear the flesh straight from her bones. With a deep breath he flies through the jutsu and sends it out at full power. He has to try and kill her if he wants her to succeed.

Naruko gulps, this was it. If she failed she would either die or be horribly injured. She reaches out her hand once more as it approaches. It was ten meters away and nothing was happening. It was five meters away and she was trembling. Then it was 1 meter away and she could feel the heat. She couldn't help it, she squeezed her eyes shut, her powers weren't working and this was going to hurt. " _Foolish child. Instinct does not mean panic._ "Didn't she want her dead? Why is she giving her advice now? What did she say before, maybe that would work. The flames were licking at her fingers now. There's no more time to think.

The fire disappears into the girls fingers. Naruko looks down at her slightly burned fingers. She had done it, Kaguya actually had left her a hint. Naruko had breathed just like always. But instead of using her lungs she used her own chakra core and as a result instead of inhaling air, she had inhaled the chakra. To her surprise Hinata wasn't the only one to run up. Sasuke did too and actually used the healing Jutsu Kurenai-sensei taught him the day before. She immediately felt relief flood her as the burns were being healed.

Hinata was relieved, she had been forced to watch as her girlfriend nearly died but it ultimately worked out. She was ready to beat the shit out of Sasuke but then the boy started healing the redhead and she decided not to. He clearly didn't want her to get hurt. So just this once she'd let him off the hook.

"Sasuke let's do it again, I want to see if I can manage to call it at will, now that I have the feeling for it." Hinata looked like she wanted to protest but one look from her girlfriend was enough to make her sigh and retreat back to Kurenai. Sasuke moves back to his previous position. With a nod from Naruko he goes through the hand seals again.

Naruko is able to do it faster this time. Once more she inhales through her chakra core and finds the fireball being sucked in through her hands. She didn't even get burned this time. She smiles at her teammates. She had learned to use her kekkei genkai! Maybe she could even take the chakra straight out of people. That isn't something she can test on her teammates though not until she is positive she can stop herself from giving them chakra exhaustion. This is all assuming she can even drain people directly.

"Excellent work you two, I'm incredibly proud of both you. Sasuke take a break for now so that you can regain some of the spent chakra. Naruko I can't really tell you how to properly practice this, so for now just try and recall the feeling of using the kekkei genkai. With something like this it's best if you can use it instantly." The redhead nods. It would be hard to practice without exhausting her teammates for the upcoming battle. But she can at least practice making the feeling instinctual on her own. "Naruko do you think you can give Hinata your resistance seals for the week?"

"Kurenai-sensei would it be alright if I try and make the seals for her instead?" Naruko had been studying seals a lot in her free time and while she had only learned to make storage scrolls and exploding tags, she had also learned the basic mechanics of Fuinjutsu. She thinks she might be able to apply that to making them.

"Okay, but I'm going to have a Kage Bunshin (Shadow Clone) test it to make sure there are no faults."

"What's type of clone is that?"

"It's mostly used for recon due to it's ability to transmit information. However it has a high chakra cost and is unusable to most people outside of elite jonin and up." The genin nod, it seems useful but dangerous.

"So then we'll still be able to know what went wrong even if it dies. is what you're saying?" Kurenai gives a nod towards her male student, he was exactly right. "When we have enough chakra to handle it will you teach us this jutsu?"

"Sure, once I think you'll be able to handle it and still fight at full strength for at least an hour then I'll let you learn it. And Sasuke, I know you'll likely just copy the hand seals anyways, but I'm serious, do not attempt this Jutsu until I give you permission." The boy nods, he respects his sensei enough to trust her word. "So how long do you think it will take you to make the seals Naruko?"

"Give me half an hour." Naruko still had to take some time to decipher her own seals. "Oh Hina-chan what do you want me to put the seal on?"

"Do you mind putting it on the left glove you gave me?" Naruko nods and Hina-chan hands the glove over.

"Alright Naruko we're going to let you focus on that for now, Hinata I want you running sprints from here to the river while we wait. Sasuke I'll be focusing on you for now so that we can try unlocking your next tomoe."

And so thirty minutes go by with Naruko spending about half of it just looking at her resistance seal and the other half actually drawing an imitation. She just seemed to naturally understand seals. It was like the matrix just naturally unraveled in her mind. And now that she knew what each aspect meant that unraveling was actually legible. She had just finished drawing the last character on the gloves when the rest of her team returned. It wasn't entirely on the gloves, the matrix overflowed onto a piece of paper she had gotten out. "Kurenai sensei this is a two step seal. The first one will compress the greater matrix onto the metal chakra plate. Then when you channel chakra into the plate the seal will activate." The woman nods understanding what she needs to do. She forms her fingers into a cross shape and with a puff of smoke a second Kurenai appears.

The clone walks over to the seal, swapping places with Naruko in the process, and does as instructed. Things work without issue and the seal compresses into the shape of the Uzumaki swirl. Then the clone puts the glove on and activates it. It doesn't explode and she finds the difficulty in walking (which was minimal because it's meant to feel like walking through mud for a genin). "It worked. You can come take it Hinata."

Naruko was distracted again. She had ignored it while making the seal but once more she finds herself drawn to the north-east. Just what is over there that she keeps feeling like she needs to go? It actually seemed to have gotten worst since she started making the seal. "Kurenai-sensei can I please go check out the north-east? I can always do my practice over there."

Kurenai didn't want to allow it. Not only because there are bandits crawling all over the island, but also because the girl had been considering leaving with that Ame nin, Konan, and she was at risk. But she also wanted to let Naruko find what she needed to. She didn't want to hold her back. "Tell you what. Tonight you and I can go together, and if it seems safe for you to practice there then I'll let you go on your own tomorrow. Okay?"

"Okay." While they had been having their conversation Hinata had put on the glove and was currently struggling to walk around.

"Naru-chan how do you deal with this?"

"You just get used to it." Kurenai disagreed. Most ninja set any resistance seals they use to make it feel like they are just wading through water, not mud. Gai had given Naruko the more advanced resistance seals because of her weights. So for the untrained Hinata this must be extremely difficult.

"Alright Hinata, now that you have the seals on I want you to run laps around the clearing. You can take a break once you finish fifty." Hinata gulps at that. She could do that normally but this was more than a little difficult. She slowly starts to stumble around the clearing. "Now then as for you Sasuke, you better run because if you can't gain the next tomoe by the time I find you then you're going to have another hole through your hand." She had drawn her sword to prove the point. The boy goes wide eyed and stock still. She takes a step forward and he snaps out of it. He turns away from her and immediately takes off in the other direction. She turns to her clone and says. "Alright you're going after him, I'm going to head to the bridge." The clone nods and takes off after Sasuke.

Naruko noticed the child, Inari, was staring at the group again. He seemed to scoff and run off. She shrugs. She reactivates her own resistance seals figuring she should have them on regardless now that she has the time.

The rest of the day simply goes by with her trying to make the feeling of inhaling with her chakra core natural. She needs it to be just as natural as breathing. Hina-chan had practically collapsed in her arms by the time she finished running laps. Naruko had to admit the image of her sweaty girlfriend in her arms had a weird appeal to it that she couldn't quite place.

When they arrived back at the house they found Sasuke trying his hardest to keep an apologetic Kurenai away. With a sigh of frustration she says. "I'm sorry alright! I wasn't actually going to stab you through the hand again, I just needed you to think I was. The good news is it worked and you have two tomoe in each eye now. Starting tomorrow I want you to keep your Sharingan active at all times, it'll help bolster both your chakra reserves and the strain will make getting the third tomoe easier in the future." At least that's what Hana had told her (The perks of having friends who were close to Itachi).

The group had settled in for dinner once more and it was at this point that Naruko noticed the picture framed on the wall. It had four people, three of which were the residents of this house, but the fourth person had his face torn out. "Hey Tazuna-san who is that in the picture?"

Inari goes still and tenses up. Guess he's the one who tore the picture. "He was the hero of our village." Inari quickly jumps to his feet and runs out of the room.

"Tou-san! I told you not to bring him up in front of Inari." Tsunami had a pained expression but she masked it under one of anger at her father.

"So who was he?"

With a sigh Tazuna continues. "He was my son in law. He was Inari's hero and had saved both his life and the village." The country of wave only had the single village but it didn't feel right to call him hero of the country. Probably because the Daimyo had never acknowledged him. Their Daimyo was a good man, but he was a blue blood and they were peasants.

"So then why does Inari-kun not like him?" It was Hinata who asked.

"He loves the man. But when Gato arrived he wanted to break our spirits. So he killed our hero to do so. He publicly executed him after having his arms, which he always used to protect, cut off. You can imagine how that would effect Inari. He's grown to think there is no such thing as heroes."

Naruko couldn't help but agree. At least in regards to the ninja world. There are no real heroes. Because a hero would save everybody without anyone suffering. Many of the villagers in Konoha would argue the Yondaime is a hero, but he still sacrificed a child to save the village. A war hero is only heroic in their home village. No, for ninjas, heroes don't exist. But civilians could always use a hero. And it's a shame for the child to think that. Naruko had never lost anyone she cared for before, so she didn't know what the boy was feeling. But her male teammate did, to an even stronger degree really. Maybe he could help the boy.

The group eats the rest of their meal in silence and once they're finished Kurenai stands and gestures to Naruko. "Well let's get going."

"Okay." The redhead gives Hina-chan a quick kiss and sets out with Kurenai-sensei.

The two women decide to run over and seeing as they aren't traveling at a civilian pace they're able to make it in an hour. They didn't run at top speed in case something happens. When they arrive all they see is a beach. Naruko still felt the pull but it was out at sea. What ever it was she couldn't see it.

"What you're sensing is probably the ruins of Uzushio."

"The Uzumaki homeland?"

"Yeah. I'm actually surprised you know about it."

"Hina-chan found records in the Hyuuga archives."

"I see. Well the land of whirlpools is where your mother hails from. She came to Konoha after escaping the destruction at six years old."

"Do you think we can go there one day." Naruko was feeling an even more intense longing the closer she got. She needed to go.

"I can request a training trip there in a few months." She pauses for a moment and looks at Naruko. "Were you really considering leaving with Konan?"

"Yes." Naruko says it without hesitation.

"You do realize I'm going to have to report this to the Hokage, right?"

"Yes." Naruko figured as much. "Hey Kurenai-sensei, what's the deal with the lullaby?"

Kurenai sighs, guess she can't put it off forever. She was just afraid the girl would hate her. "Naruko. . . I, well I raised you until you were three." Kurenai wanted to squeeze her eyes shut and look away. But she couldn't, she had to look the girl in the eye.

"Oh, so then I guess you taught it to me?" It was worded as a statement but spoken as a question.

"Yes, I used to sing it to you every night. It was your favorite."

"I'm sorry, Kurenai-sensei I don't remember you. Or anything from before I was four really. . . Wait that's not really true I remember one thing, only vaguely. I remember looking up at a teen with red eyes. I guess that's you. I had always figured it was an Uchiha." It's not like Kurenai didn't match the description of most Uchiha.

Kurenai didn't remember a specific time that happened. But Naruko as a child had always been fond of tugging on the bottom of her dress and looking up at her. So she was probably remembering one of those times. Kurenai couldn't help it, she pulled the girl into a hug. Naruko didn't know what to think about this. She's only been hugged by a few times in her life, Hina-chan didn't count cause that's different, so she was a little weirded out. Also she felt like she was betraying Hina-chan because her face was buried in the other woman's rack. She wonders if Hina-chan would let her do this with her.

Kurenai was at first concerned she was taking things to far but then she looked at the redheads expression and realized the girl was having trouble using common sense. Something she'll likely always have a problem with. Kurenai can't help but smile, the girl hadn't changed at heart since she was little. "Come on, I'm sure Hinata is going catatonic without you."

"I hope not I don't think we could arrive on time to help her." Yep the girl would need help.

* * *

And so the training went, Naruko had made another resistance seal the next day, this one was for Sasuke. She had put it on a red ribbon she had stored in her scroll. She handed it to him once she was done with the sealing, not having seen the reason to consult Kurenai-sensei after it worked the first time. The boy had taken it and tied it around his arm. She had told him he can find something he likes better once they're back in Konoha. He nodded his thanks. Even if it was suddenly a bitch to move around. Hinata had run fifty laps like this yesterday? And Naruko walked around with a higher level version of this all the time? He felt his respect for her insane physical abilities rising.

Three days later Naruko and Hinata were escorting Tsunami through town, she had shopping to do. And the two girls wanted to see the town, Naruko because she had never been outside of Konoha (Though Hinata hadn't either) and Hinata because she had wanted to see the damage wrought by Gato, and to protect the clueless redhead. They had come across a group of bandits who were busy terrorizing towns folk. Tsunami tore her eyes away in disgust while Naruko looked on in curiosity. Hinata was eyeing them for trouble.

The bandits had noticed them and seemed to want something, Naruko wouldn't learn it was sexual until Hinata explained it later, from the three girls. They had sauntered right up to the three women. Most of them seemed intent on the older woman, not having an interest in children, but one of them seemed intent on Naruko and Hinata. More specifically on Naruko. Hinata narrowed her eyes at the man. "You two are pretty cute, especially the little redhead. I bet we could have lots of fun. So why not just come with me peacefully and I can show you a good time. Of course it'd be even more-" The man is cut off as a Jyuken strike connects with his throat. His windpipe was forcefully closed by the strike. He was slowly choking to death.

"Are you gonna kill him Hina-chan? You haven't killed anyone before." Naruko had only killed when she had saved Hina-chan all those years ago and she wasn't even conscious for it. But from how she understands it most people are supposed to freak out when this happens.

"That man was scum Naru-chan. As are these men." She says turning towards them with her Byakugan activated. The other men abandon the man choking on the ground and run. This child was a monster and they wanted nothing to do with her. Hinata would show no mercy to those who came onto Naru-chan like this. The other girl didn't seem to understand the meaning of the bandits words, but Hinata was not so naive.

"Okay, if you're sure." Tsunami looks at them with a weirdly but they continue on their way, leaving the man to slowly choke from his own chakra network strangling him. Hinata would always protect Naruko, that's what she resolved.

The group found themselves at dinner once more. The group was generally making casual and lighthearted conversation. It seemed to be enraging the eight year old child as finally he bursts out angrily. "Why do you guys bother to try so hard?! No matter how hard you train, you're still no match for Gato's men! No matter what glorious claims you make or how hard you work, the weak will only end up getting killed!"

Naruko speaks up, "You're right, the weak will die and the strong will live."

"But some times the strong die too." Sasuke continues.

"And some times you get weak pigs like Gato who rise to the top." Hinata picked up next.

"But we're not weak like you Inari, we're strong because we have no other choice." Naruko spoke again, followed by Hinata.

"And that's why Gato will die, because we are stronger than him, and that is our duty."

"We're going to save wave, not because we're heroes. But because we're ninja. And above all else."

Kurenai finally speaks up, "Ninja endure."

The boy didn't seem content with that and runs off. Kaiza had been the strongest and he'd been killed because of Gato, how could these people possibly be any different?

"I'm sorry about him, he used to be so cheerful."

"It's okay, we understand Tsunami-san." Kurenai turns to Hinata. "I heard you killed a bandit earlier."

"Yes, he was trying to come on to us."

"Was that what he was doing?"

"Naru-chan he had basically told us he would force himself on us if we don't let him do it peacefully."

"Oh, I guess your reaction makes more sense now." Hinata sighs, she loved the girl but the redhead would be hopeless without her.

"So then Hinata how do you feel about your first kill?"

"Fine." That worried Kurenai, not because she thought the girl was closing up. No, she was worried that the girl didn't feel any kind of remorse for killing. It's abnormal for most genin. But then, there is nothing normal about this team.

* * *

Finally the day had arrived, the group was gathered on the bridge, Tazuna was there just because the others were supposed to be after him, so it's better if he's with them. They had told none of the builders to come today because they were expecting the confrontation. They were proven right when two people casually walked onto the bridge. The first figure was a dark skinned woman (though not as dark skinned as someone from Kumo) with light green hair. She had orange eyes that seemed to sparkle with mischief. She was only a little taller than Naruko but her face seemed to peg her as being older, maybe 15 or 16. She wore a white midriff shirt. Actually now that Naruko thought about it she wore a lot of white. The second figure was a pale skinned man with a pipe that seemed to be blowing bubbles instead of smoke. He had golden eyes and shoulder length brown hair. He was also fairly thin. He was dressed in a light blue kimono with an orange sash.

They both looked at Naruko and seemed to say something to one another before looking at Tazuna. Then the green haired girl seemed to disappear and reappear in front of Naruko. Only Sasuke was able to see her move. "Hi! I'm Fuu! You know you're red hair is very beautiful." The girl leaned in closely to the redhead, Hinata was ready to lunge at her.

"Um, Thank you."

"You know what would make it even better?"

"What?"

"If it was wrapped up in my hands while you moan." Before anyone can say anything else the green haired girl leans in and locks Naruko in a searing kiss. She's forced to leap away as an angry Hyuuga sends a hand straight for the woman's heart. "Woah, you have serious anger problems. You have a problem with girls liking girls?"

"No, I have problem with other girls kissing my girlfriend."

"Oh, that would make sense, well when she comes to Ame then she can just be my girlfriend."

Kurenai was looking carefully at the green haired girl, Fuu, she had a forehead protector from Takigakure, though it also marked her as a missing nin. Looking over she sees the man is a missing nin from Kiri. So Ame was recruiting missing nin as well then?

"No! Naruko is mine!"

"Fuu, stop being stupid. We agreed I'd fight the genin so stop provoking them."

She pouts and returns to the man. "You're no fun Utakata, there's a cute girl just waiting for me to seduce and you want to take that away from me? If I had known Naruko was so cute I never would have agreed to let you fight the genin."

"We both know my skills are better at fighting groups, you're practically born to be a duelist."

Fuu sighs over dramatically. "You're right, I can always just seduce her later I guess."

"Naru-chan don't think for even a second I'm going to let that hussie sway you away from me." She had already staked her claim on the redhead and she didn't need to mention it. They both knew.

"Don't worry Hina-chan I like kissing you better anyways." The two are distracted from their conversation as a bubble floats between them.

"Dodge!" The bubble explodes violently just as the two girls jump away. They see a green blur rush through the new gap and lodge a fist in their sensei, blowing her away from them. Sasuke didn't hesitate to rush forward to the man and blow out a stream of fire. The man simply blows bubbles their way that when connecting with the fire splash out in a wave of water. Their side of the bridge gets covered in steam. The man starts to blow more bubbles, a few of them a sickly green while others seemed normal. The only one who could tell the difference between the latter bubbles was Hinata, who could see the difference in chakra. Some of them were the water bubbles while others were explosive. And they were all spreading throughout the steam, like a floating minefield.

Sasuke retreats out the steam with Hinata directing him. On the other side of the bridge Kurenai had already drawn her sword and found herself facing off against another person who could match her. This time it was a sword made of water. It used a technique made in Takigakure the **Mizukiri no Yaiba** (The Watercutting sword). But Kurenai had subtly been weaving a Genjutsu with each break in their clashes. It would slowly but surely make the woman think she was slightly more to the left than she really was. In a fight like this it would be an instant loss for her once she is fully shifted. The green haired woman seemed to be happily swinging away. The girl seemed to be doing something odd though. She was occasionally clicking her teeth.

Back with the genin they were slowly finding themselves getting singed by these explosive bubbles. They hadn't seen the effects of the green bubbles yet though. That was about to prove untrue as one of them finally popped, though it missed the genin, and melted everything it came in contact with. They were instantly wary, they couldn't let that touch them. They were all shocked when Utakata nimbly weaved between the bubbles and landed a devastating punch to Sasuke, who could see it coming but wasn't fast enough to dodge completely. He did manage to make his arm take the brunt of the hit. It was instantly dislocated but at least he didn't break any ribs. He only barely bit back the cry of pain.

In return for his effort Utakata received a powerful kick to the temple that sent him tumbling back, and staggering unsteadily. His brain was feeling rattled and he found it harder to think straight. With a deep inhale he blows more bubbles, most of them green.

Naruko had moved to fast and slipped on the wet ground and fell over. The bubbles were all headed her way.

Kurenai had realized her genjutsu wasn't working, not because the girl broke through it, but because that clicking of hers seemed to be helping her track Kurenai. Something seemed to happen with the girl though because she suddenly became distracted and Kurenai was able to stab her through the stomach.

The bubbles were all heading straight for Naruko, much faster than the previous bubbles. The girl managed to get up to dodge most of them, but one had escaped her notice and was floating behind her. It hadn't escaped Hinata's however and she rushes forward pushing her girlfriend down just in time as the bubble pops. She had protected Naruko just like she said she would and then the pain hits. She lets out a blood curdling scream as the acid lands on her hand and starts to eat through it. She had to force herself not to cradle her injured hand as the acid continues to corrode it. And then she felt it.

Naruko was watching in horror as her girlfriend protected her. She could barely comprehend it, she failed, she needed to be saved and her girlfriend was losing her right hand for it. The world was consumed in a haze of red.

* * *

Everyone gasps as an intense feeling of dread washes through the bridge, Tazuna had even passed out. Naruko's hair had turned white and she was faster. So fast that Utakata could barely blink before he found one of his arms being ripped off. He backs away terrified. This was the power they wanted to control? This was awful! He can't escape as he finds himself being drained of his chakra. The girl had a hand stuck out towards him and he could feel himself rapidly becoming exhausted. And then he feels an intense pain erupt from his chest as a hand tears straight through it. The light fades from his eyes and he falls over, dead.

Sasuke was horrified, was this his teammates secret? And why did she have some kind of Sharingan? Is that the Mangekyo? Is she actually an Uchiha? He had so many questions but the terror being inflicted upon him is to much and he has to put them off. He's not even sure if she's aware.

His attention is snapped to the side as Hinata winces again, he quickly tears off his shirt and wraps the arm up. He has to get the acid off before he starts the healing process. It doesn't take long but once he unveils the hand he winces. It's gone, corroded to a mutilated stump. The best he can do is just close up the wound at her wrist. But if he does then any medical jutsu that might be able to restore her hand will be unusable. Kurenai arrives next to him and he looks at her hopefully. She shakes her head understanding his train of thought. "The hand is gone, we have to close the wound or she'll bleed out." He nods and they perform the **Shōsen Jutsu** (Mystical Palm Technique). The wound closes quickly but the hand is truly gone. He looks up ahead and sees Naruko approaching them, her hair was slowly becoming red again and just as she arrived she collapses. She was out cold. Hinata was not however and was still groaning in pain, doing her best not to scream their ears off.

His thoughts are interrupted as a slow clap rings through the bridge. A short man in a suit and tie saunters onto the bridge. He looks at the various downed ninja and smiles. "My plan couldn't have gone better, I have my hostages, I don't have to pay these shitty ninja, and you're all going to die here today and wave will lose all hope." He says gesturing to a battered Tsunami and Inari.

Kurenai narrows her eyes and faster than any of the thugs can see she weaves two Genjutsu. One to make it look like she's still there and the other to turn herself invisible. She reappears when she cuts the heads off both thugs holding the hostages. She sends the civilians towards the others while she massacres the bandits. It doesn't take long for the last man standing to be Gato himself. The pig pleads for his life. "Wait! I can give you anything you want! Money, Power, anything! Just don't kill me!"

She pauses and asks "Do you know what I really want?"

"I-I. . ."

He's unable to come up with anything as she looks down at him coldly and says, "I want your head." And so his head rolls as she ends his life with a flick of her sword. She looks back at her genin and sees Sasuke still focusing on Hinata. She also notices the green haired girl is gone. She must have fled when she felt Naruko's power. Kurenai had been busier focusing on Hinata. Out of the corner of her eye she sees Tazuna being shaken awake by his family.

"K-Kurenai-sensei, is Naru-chan alright?" Of course Hinata would be focused on Naruko after having just lost a hand.

"She'll be fine, get some rest Hinata. You deserve it."

"I-I'm glad she's okay, I did it, I protected her. And that rest sounds pretty good right now." The girl was paler than usual but Sasuke had stopped her bleeding and she would likely live. But she might not be able to continue as a ninja. She should have just had them turn back at the beginning of this mission. Her genin could have lost her career because of this.

With the two female genin passed out Sasuke turns to Kurenai and asks. "What was that?"

"Naruko will tell you as promised when we get back to Konoha." Sasuke didn't seem satisfied with that answer, he wanted to know what the Sharingan is about. But he would have to wait. It's Naruko's secret to tell and he'd have to deal with that.

Tazuna was looking sadly at the group of ninja. They had freed the country but it cost these kids their innocence, and the white eyed girl her right hand. They said there's no such thing as heroes but they seemed to embody that perfectly.

* * *

A/N Oh boy that chapter was a hard one. Not to write, the writing actually flowed very natural. But it was actually kind of hard to bring myself to go through with my plans for Hinata. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. And in case any of you are wondering Hinata losing her hand is not just senseless brutality, I do have plans for that.

So Naruko uses the Juubi's power again once more because of Hinata. She also learns about Uzushio being the pull. Well Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and I'll see you all next time.

CM 11/6/2018


	10. Swings Are the Loneliest Toy

The next few days were hectic for everybody in Wave. Tazuna had started working harder than ever to finish the bridge, now that he no longer had to fear Gato or his thugs. For the rest of Wave they had spent a day celebrating and then got to work on rebuilding. They would celebrate more once the country recovered. When they either found their Daimyo or installed a new one they would be sure to celebrate the date of Gato's death as their day of freedom.

Naruko and Hinata were both bedridden for several days. Naruko was suffering an odd form of chakra exhaustion that Kurenai can only assume comes from using the Demon's power. Hinata on the other hand was abusing her new found injury to have an excuse to stay in bed and cuddle with Naruko. Of course she was quietly mulling over how she could continue to be a ninja like this. The Jyuken was a style that relied incredibly heavily on the users hands. So missing one hand, more or less, ended her ability to use it. Of course she had already been trying to incorporate the use of kicks to close tenketsu so now she'd just have to make it work for real.

The elders will be annoying though. They could try any number of things, none of which bode well for her. She'd have to come up with a plan to rebuff them.

Hinata looks down at her still passed out girlfriend. Why is she still passed out? Last time she used the demons chakra she had woken up within 24 hours. This time it has been three days and she was still asleep. Hinata gently strokes one of the strands of hair from the sleeping redheads face, she may have been nearly crippled because of it, she refused to consider losing her arm as being actually crippled, but she would gladly protect her once more.

Sasuke was feeling miserable. He had nearly lost both his friends in that fight. And more to the point it was because he was protected, he was to weak to help either of them. He was somewhat having doubts in his prior interest in medical Jutsu. He hadn't been able to use it to save his friends hand, so was it truly worth pursuing? No it was. He wasn't good enough to save the hand but he had at least been able to stop her from dying. He had heard Senju Tsunade was the greatest medic nin to ever live. It sounds fitting for an Uchiha to take that title from her. He'll learn to do what she can't, he'll learn to heal all injuries. But first he needs to learn more.

Kurenai had been training. She wasn't fast enough in defeating Fuu, she only stabbed her because the woman seemed to detect the bubbles, she needed to be stronger. So that she can make sure her genin would be able to go on missions without fear of injury. So she trained, her Kenjutsu was getting close to S-rank. She wasn't afraid of bandits, the few that remained alive had been run out so she held no fear.

* * *

Naruko found herself in the temple again. She was lying down on a soft pillow. Looking up she realizes it's not a pillow, but Kaguya's lap. The white eyed woman was gently stroking her head. "Why am I here?"

"You used the Juubi's chakra."

"I thought it's yours?"

"It is, but the distinction is mine doesn't bare any hatred in it." She held no capacity for hatred, she was apathetic towards everything save perhaps a slight fondness for her children and grandchildren. Well once upon a time she held a capacity for emotion, but she had banished it all into the Juubi.

"So then why did using it bring me here?"

"Because I wanted to bring you here."

"Why?"

"I wanted to see how you've changed."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I wanted to see if you would grow to resemble Kagura more."

"Do I?"

"Yes, you seem to remind me of her more with each passing day." She doesn't look to much like her, but the resemblance was there none the less.

"Can you tell me about her?"

"What would you like to know?"

"Anything really."

"Well she was the youngest of three siblings."

"Who were her siblings?"

"The older brother was Indra and younger was Asura. I believe they're known as the progenitors of the Uchiha and Senju clan respectively."

"Did Kagura start any clan?"

"Yes, she created the Uzumaki clan, the very same one you hail from."

"So what were the siblings like?"

"The older brother was writhe with talent, but he was an arrogant child. Perhaps because his father and I spoiled him to much when he was an only child." She had an odd look of fondness on her face. It seemed out of place on the normally cool beauty.

"The younger brother was the least talented in the family. At least as a child he was. As he grew his talent did with him and he grew to be just as powerful as his older brother. They were equals by the time they were teens, even if Indra never wanted to acknowledge that fact."

"Kagura was a sweet child. She was adored by both of her siblings. She was a lot younger than the brothers. Indra was only two years older than Asura but he was nearly eight years older than Kagura."

Kaguya looked down and found the redhead sleeping again. She sighs. "She also had a short attention span like you. You know, she always was my favorite grandchild. I hope you can live a good life, because when I escape you will die. And I will escape. Or Zetsu will free me. I hope you can at least enjoy what little time you have left, Kagura. Or I suppose you go by Naruko this time." She gives a soft smile as her shadow starts to split onto the statues once more. "It would seem we're out of time, I'll return you now. Until we meet again."

* * *

Hinata was surprised to see her girlfriend waking up. She doesn't really know why, she had to wake up sometime. "Morning Naru-chan."

"Morning Hina-chan." Naruko didn't really get up, she just snaked her arms around the white eyed girl and snuggled into her drowsily.

"Naru-chan you've been asleep for three days, don't you think it's time you get up?"

With a sigh Naru-chan slowly rises and Hinata notices something odd. It was only there for an instant, but she could have sworn Naru-chan's pupils were white for the briefest of moments.

As Naruko rises she notices Hinata's missing right hand. "How is it?"

"It's an adjustment, but I'll get by. I'd gladly sacrifice a hand to save your life."

"Hinata." The girl blinks in surprise, Naruko hadn't called her by her name without chan in years. "I don't want you to hurt yourself for me. I wanted us to get stronger so we don't have to get hurt." Hinata looks like she is about to protest. "No! Hinata, I don't want to see you getting hurt for my sake. I'm faster than you Hina-chan, I likely always will be. If you had just told me to move I could have dodged, and you would still have your hand." Hinata looks down, the redhead was right, she could have just put her faith in the redheads ability. She had been obsessed with protecting her, to the point she had let it cloud her rationality. "But don't think for a second I don't appreciate it. I just love you to much to want to see you get hurt like this more."

"Okay, I'll try and have faith in your ability more." Naruko nods, that's all she could ask for. She leans in and gives the white eyed girl a kiss. She still loved the girl more than anything.

A polite cough interrupts the two lovers as Kurenai stands in the doorway. They look at her for a moment before Hinata smiles mischievously and leans forward kissing Naruko more passionately.

"You're such a brat Hinata. How're you feeling Naruko?" The redhead finally manages to break free of her girlfriends lips, blushing softly.

"I feel fine, pretty normal really." Kurenai nods.

"We'll be leaving in a few days, the bridge is almost done and we need to return to Konoha." Naruko nods.

"So what happened with the enemy nin and Gato?"

"You killed Utakata and Fuu escaped while we were distracted with Hinata. As for Gato I killed him." Naruko nods, she can't really remember it, but they have no reason to lie to her.

* * *

And so the heroes of wave left the country five days later. The journey back to Konoha was considerably faster than the journey to wave. And it only took them a day of traveling at ninja pace to reach the village.

When the team reached the gates they were greeted by Izumo and Kotetsu, known as the eternal gate guards. Of course only the elite jonin and up knew that the two were actually jonin level nin that were intentionally kept at chunin to sell the friendly vibe. They accepted it gracefully and held the act well.

The guards did a double take upon seeing the handless Hyuuga heiress. Talk about C-ranks going poorly. Kurenai quickly files the paperwork and the group is let into the village. They had to report directly to the Hokage as the mission involved combat. It didn't take long to arrive at the Hokage tower. They walk up to the secretaries desk outside of the Sandaime's office.

"Is Hokage-sama free?" Kurenai asks, looking at the secretary.

The woman looks up and gestures to the door. "He's not busy at the moment, go ahead and knock." Kurenai nods and does so.

"Enter."

Team 7 steps into the office and Kurenai bows, then she says, "Team 7 reporting back from C-rank mission to wave."

Hiruzen eyed the missing hand of the Hyuuga heiress and the look the Uchiha heir was trying, and failing, to subtly give the Uzumaki. "Report."

"Hours after leaving the village we encountered the Demon Brothers and swiftly subdued them. I'm assuming you got my message?" The man nods and she continues, "When we arrived at wave we encountered a nin from Ame."

"They finally ended their isolation?"

"Yes sir, the woman we encountered claimed to be one of the leaders of Ame. Her name is Konan and she's an S-rank nin. Apparently Hanzo the Salamander is dead." Hiruzen's eyes widen at that. this was huge news indeed. "She had claimed she wanted to test Naruko and we fought. She injured me and then approached Naruko. She offered her to join Ame." Hiruzen's eyes flick to the redhead. She was here and not in bonds so she likely rejected, still that's concerning. "She considered the offer seriously before saying no. Then the woman told us she'd be sending comrades to kill the bridge builder a week later, and she left."

"Naruko-chan, why would you consider the offer?"

"Permission to speak freely?"

"Granted."

"First, it's Naruko. Second, the people of Konoha abuse me, and I hold no love for them." He had figured as much, he'd have to recall Jiraiya. The man would be furious at him, but he should be able to help ensure the girl remains loyal to Konoha. And if even that doesn't work, then she would be disposed of. For now he can't punish her for considering the offer, it would only make her more likely to leave if given an opportunity.

"Kurenai, continue."

"We trained for a week and then had the battle. The enemies were a missing nin from Kiri and a missing nin from Taki. I have the body of the nin from Kiri sealed in a scroll." The aged kage nods. "The nin from Taki ultimately escaped. During the fight the nin from Kiri used some kind of acid bubble technique. One of said bubbles popped on Hinata's hand and it caused Naruko to use it's power." Hiruzen nods, well that explains the oddities with the genin. "Then Gato appeared and I killed him. After that we stayed to recover and to finish the C-rank."

"I see. Well then Hinata, let me ask you. Do you wish to continue active duty?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

"Then all four of you will be given time to train and help Hinata learn to fight with only one hand." He knew they would grow from this, he could see it in their eyes. "You all will also be marked down as having completed both a C-rank mission and an A-rank mission." It would be S-rank but the Ame nin, Konan (the name sounded familiar but he couldn't quite remember from where), was not aiming to kill them, and the mission was not of high importance to the village. "Now you're dismissed, Kurenai I expect a full written report on my desk in two days."

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

* * *

The group had split up, Hinata had gone back to meet with the Hyuuga clan about the mission. And of course in regards to her now missing hand. Kurenai had gone to get some rest and then see if Yugao would be willing to help her with her Kenjutsu. Sasuke and Naruko had shared a look and made their way to the Uchiha clan compound.

The two soon found themselves sitting across from one another in Sasuke's living room. After several moments of silence Naruko speaks up. "I owe you an explanation. What do you want me to start with?"

"Why do the villagers hate you?"

"You know how the demon attacked the village on the night of my birth?" He actually didn't know it was her birthday, but he knew about the attack.

"Do they think you're the demon because of your birthday?" They would have to be supremely stupid to think so.

"No, they think I'm the demon because the Yondaime defeated it by sealing it inside me."

"Oh." Well that made more sense. "Are you the demon?"

"I don't think so, I always thought I was a little to squishy to be a fearsome demon." She says while poking at her cheek to prove her point. Sasuke rolls his eyes.

"Are you an Uchiha?"

Naruko gives him an odd look. "I don't know, I have no idea who my father is, but I do know my mother is an Uzumaki. Why do you ask? Wait, did my eyes change on the bridge"

He nods. "They were entirely red with rings and tomoe spread along the rings."

"I don't know if that's a Sharingan or not, I know the Juubi, the name of the demon, has those eyes though." Sasuke wasn't sure how he felt about learning that the demon who destroyed the village had something like a Sharingan.

"Is Kaguya real?"

"Yes the Juubi is a part of her, she's like the conscious, I guess." So the being that destroyed the village had a Byakugan and a Sharingan? That is odd. There was a legend in his family that the two descended from the same person but he had never put much stock in it. It also meant this Kagura woman was real.

"I see, thank you for telling me all this."

"No worries, you're like my second closest friend, and you're the closest if I don't count Hina-chan, cause she's my girlfriend." She meant it, she had a small circle of friends as it stood anyways, she was only tangentially friends with Shikamaru and Choji. And while she was fond of Shino he could never stand to be around her.

A warm feeling spreads through Sasuke at that. It was one thing to consider the two girls his friends but it's another to know the feelings mutual.

"Sasuke you're blushing, Hina-chan's gonna be mad." Naruko still remembered being told that people blush cause it means they like her, she missed the embarrassment point, and Hina-chan would be mad that he liked her.

"It's not because I love you Naruko."

"Oh, then why are you blushing."

He sighs as the blush disappears, "It's called being bashful or shy. Sometimes people blush when they are embarrassed."

"Oh, why are you embarrassed?"

"I'm gonna let you figure that out for yourself." She probably never would, the redhead was just to naive and lacked common sense.

* * *

Hinata was having a much less pleasant conversation as she sat between her father and mother. Together they were sitting across from the clan elders.

One of the elders spoke. "Hiashi-sama I must insist we seal her and place her in the branch family. She's no longer fit to be the heiress."

A different elder spoke, "I disagree. I think we should just find her a suitably strong husband. She is still talented and her children will be too. So we should simply try and have her produce heirs that will instead inherit the clan." Several of the other elders seemed to support this idea.

After several minutes of the elders discussing this Hiashi speaks. "Hinata, do you intend to continue active duty?"

"Yes, Otou-sama." The elders quiet at that.

"Then I will make you a deal. The chunin exams are in a few months. If you win it all and are promoted, then you will not be forced to marry early, nor will you be forced into the branch house. If you win the exams I will not allow suitors to approach you until you're sixteen." The elders didn't seem to like this idea, but it was a decree from the clan head, they couldn't directly oppose it. But the girl would fail, especially since there is no guarantee her sensei would even put her in the exams.

"I accept, thank you Otou-sama." She knew her father had just bought her time. If she could win the chunin exams then she would have a few more years with Naruko, years that she could use to frame the elders. So she would just have to be better than she was with both hands. She'd have to train harder than ever before. She couldn't afford any less.

"Hiashi-sama you cannot be serious, what if the girl is kidnapped while she's like this?"

"You forget her talent. She will prove her strength, just as she always has. And did you forget the demon, "He had to bite back a wince, he never once thought of Naruko as the beast, but the elders were more responsive when he acted like he hated her, "It still wants to protect Hinata no matter what, if she is kidnapped I have no doubts it will save her and bring her back."

Hinata was inclined to agree, Naru-chan would realize quickly if Hinata went missing. And she'd likely follow her kidnappers to the ends of the earth to find them. The perks of having a wide range sensor as a girlfriend.

* * *

Team 7 met once more three days later, Kurenai had a few noticeable bruises but she had never seemed more pleased to her genin. The woman had been training with Anko and Yugao almost religiously for the past three days. Looking at her genin, particularly Hinata, she can see they've been much the same. Well it's not so obvious on Naruko because the redhead has an almost insane healing factor, but the point stands (Sasuke has likely been healing her too).

"We're not going to be taking any missions for the next month, thanks to the leave Hokage-sama gave us. Don't think for even a second that doesn't mean we won't be working. This next month is going to be hell for all three of you." And herself, because she wouldn't just be training the kids. She was going to reach S-rank and nothing would stop her.

And so the group trained. Naruko had spent a lot of her free time helping Hinata with using her kicks properly. Sasuke had spent a lot of free time researching Medical Jutsu. Of course none of this includes what they worked on with Kurenai. By the end of the month Hinata and Sasuke had become as fast as Naruko was at graduation. The redhead had only gotten faster. Kurenai estimated the girl to be reaching mid-high chunin level speeds.

All three of them had been taught Kurenai's personal favorite Genjutsu **Magen: Jubaku Satsu** (Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death). She wasn't going to let up on teaching them Genjutsu. It had been real hard to teach Hinata. The white eyed girl had picked up on the principals fairly easily, but with only one hand she had to figure out how to use it one handed. If the girl didn't have as excellent control of her chakra as she does then it wouldn't even be possible for her. The girl could learn, but it would always be harder for her to use Jutsu now.

Naruko had started to notice Hina-chan acting odd over the course of the month. The white eyed girl seemed to have gotten clingier, like she's running out of time to live. Something had been bothering her and the girl wasn't talking to Naruko about it. She had also been much fiercer in her spars. Of course for the most part Naruko had gained the advantage. It was weird and almost felt wrong to the redhead that she was winning the majority of their spars. She hadn't realized just how much comfort she drew from Hina-chan being strong enough to win most of the time. It was like she was a pillar that Naruko always leaned on, and now that pillar is crumbling.

It all confused Naruko so much. Hina-chan refused to leave her alone, the girl was physically closer than ever, and yet she was the farther emotionally than Naruko could ever remember. It kind of hurt. It's like the girl she loves is slowly disappearing, or leaving her. Naruko didn't really know what to do and it made her feel like someone was squeezing her heart.

Hinata didn't know why she didn't tell Naru-chan the truth of what's going on. She supposed she just didn't want to worry her girlfriend. Because she knew Naru-chan would be worrying out of her mind if she knew about Hinata's deal with her father. She'd understand, the redhead always had.

Kurenai and Sasuke had noticed the distance between the two but had no idea what was causing it. They could at least tell the trouble it was causing Naruko, the very same trouble Hinata seemed oblivious too. For now they intend to let the other two work it out themselves. Kurenai had resolved to step in if it seems to interfere with their ability to do missions. Or if Hinata somehow makes Naruko cry.

* * *

As fate would have it the team had decided to sign up for a C-rank immediately upon finishing their month of rest. The Hokage had decided to give them something simple. A bandit extermination in northern Fire Country. Of course the Hokage gave them this mission specifically to see if the team, and the Hyuuga heiress, is still fit for active duty.

The group had prepared and set out immediately. Kurenai had made sure after Wave the genin would always have scrolls packed with mission provisions. It was standard for most ranked tokubetsu jonin and above to do so and she wanted her team to function just as well as high ranking teams.

It only took them a day of traveling to arrive at the bandit camp. Kurenai disguised the group under a Genjutsu and ordered her genin to observe the camp. She made sure Hinata had her Byakugan active while they observed. As far as bandits went these guys were nothing out of the ordinary. They were spread around the camp drinking, singing generally making merriment. Of course they were also fighting each other and molesting captured women. The genin felt a little sick, but Kurenai knew better, this was all fairly normal for bandits. It didn't make it right, but for as long as they would be exterminating bandits they would be seeing scenes similar to this one. Honestly as far as bandit camps went this one seemed pretty tame. She had seen worse, and unfortunately one day her genin will see worse as well.

The group sat there for what felt like an eternity, at least to the genin, watching as the bandits continued to amble about the camp. Finally Kurenai made a single hand signal and the group descended on the camp. Their retribution was swift and ruthless. Naruko had quickly been passing by bandits, barely visible to the untrained eye, tagging them with explosive tags before moving on. She was charged with taking the north-west portion of the camp. Hinata had swiftly been executing bandits as she went, her new taijutsu style landing kicks to each and every bandits temple, the force rattling their brain and the chakra disconnecting it from the rest of the body, she had the north-east portion of the camp. Sasuke had the last third of the camp, and had taken to disabling the bandits on mass with Genjutsu. That and using the Chakra Scalpel, he had learned during the month, to disable their tendons.

Kurenai was charged with silently getting any captives out of the camp. The group met a mile outside the camp not even ten minutes later. Kurenai gives the redhead a look and she nods. "Go." Naruko puts her fingers together and channels chakra to the tags. They all detonate at once. The resulting explosions is enough to temporarily light up the night sky. "Now we move onto the second part of bandit exterminations. We have several captives with us that need to be relocated to the nearest village so they can move on with their lives." Of course not every ninja village bothers to help the captives return to normal life, but Konoha wants the world to think they're the good guys, and aiding the civilians was part of that.

Unsurprisingly the longest part of the mission turned out to be just that. The group had to travel at a civilians pace, and given that some of the women had broken pelvises and/or legs it was especially slow. Sasuke would have healed them but the few that were awake would have panic attacks if he got to close, so he had to keep his distance.

Naruko realized this was likely another use of the **Henge no Jutsu** (Transformation Technique). It would make it easier to keep the civilians comfortable in a situation like this. She also thought Sasuke's permanently harsh expression also probably didn't help him. He had loosened up around her a lot this past month but even then he still seemed to be scowling. But she had realized that's just how he is. Kind of like how he says she always seems to be either bored or clueless. She didn't get how she seemed clueless but when she asked he just snorted and said "That's part of the reason." She had shrugged and dropped the issue.

Now that she thinks about it she's been spending a lot of time with Sasuke this past month. Maybe that's why Hina-chan's upset with her. She hadn't really thought about how Hina-chan might feel about her spending time with other people. She used to pretty much only spend time with Hina-chan. She'd have to talk about it with the other girl later. Right now they're still on a mission.

Of course it took a day to reach the nearest village and Kurenai had supplied the group of beleaguered women with funds to restart their lives. After making sure they had settled the group from Konoha left.

By the time Team 7 had arrived back in the village Naruko was fairly sure it was somehow her fault that Hina-chan was mad, probably because of Sasuke, and she'd have to do something to make up for it. They hadn't been on a date in a while, maybe she could do something nice for the other girl. Reporting to the Hokage was even simpler this time, probably because it was only a C-rank and went pretty much exactly as expected. The group received their payment from the mission desk and went their separate ways. Well Naruko went with Hina-chan.

"Hey Hina-chan, let's go on a date this Sunday."

"Sorry Naru-chan, but I've gotta keep training, maybe hang out with Sasuke." So Hina-chan really was jealous then.

Of course Hinata wasn't having thoughts along those lines. She wouldn't have time to go on dates with her girlfriend until she had completed the deal with her father. It was all so she could secure Naru-chan and her futures together.

"Oh, um, okay. Maybe next Sunday then?" Hinata sighs. Why was Naruko being so needy? They still spent plenty of time together. They trained together everyday.

"I'm sorry Naru-chan, maybe some other time." Despite having the all seeing Byakugan she missed the brief flash of disappointment and slight hurt that crossed her girlfriends face.

The redheads voice is quiet as she responds. "Okay. . . Sorry for bothering you." Naruko released her resistance seals and disappeared from sight. She returned to her apartment and quickly flopped onto her bed. She had to admit, being dismissed like that hurt surprisingly bad. Did Hina-chan not care like she used to? Naruko would drop everything if it meant spending time with Hina-chan, and the white eyed girl would have done the same for her not to long ago. Obviously she won't anymore. Maybe Hina-chan's opinion changed because she lost a hand over her. Or maybe she decided Naruko is a monster and she doesn't care anymore. That thought actually stung a lot. She couldn't bare the thought of the white eyed girl hating her now.

* * *

The following few days of training had proven very frustrating for Kurenai. She could tell things got worse between Naruko and Hinata, and judging by the way they're acting it's the white eyed girls fault, and she doesn't realize it. Naruko had approached Hinata multiple times only to back down before even saying anything. And Hinata never seemed to notice, always being to focused on training. She can't blame the kids for the drama, she had been twelve once too so she can understand what they're going through (though when she was twelve she was already a chunin and was in the middle of a war, and only barely started to form a crush on Asuma). But this can't go on. So during their one on one she confronted the girl.

"Hinata what's been going on with you?"

"What do you mean Kurenai-sensei?"

"Why have you been ignoring Naruko?"

Hinata looked affronted at that, "I'm not, we're talking just as much as ever."

"Okay then, outside of training when was the last time you two were together?"

Hinata wanted to say the day before on instinct, because in the past it had always been true. But it wasn't. She hadn't spent any time with the redhead in the past week, actually now that she thinks about it she's maybe had one day of relaxing with the redhead in the past month. Oh no.

"If you want to break up with her you should just get it over with."

"Break up with her?! Why would I want to do that?" Hinata was alarmed, she would never want to break up with Naru-chan. She loved her.

"Because you've been ignoring her." Hinata couldn't even deny it. "Have you even noticed the looks she's been giving you?"

"What looks?" She'd assume they're beyond the normal looks of love and trust.

"She walks up to you multiple times a day, everyday, and looks like she wants to talk. But she always backs down." Kurenai looks at the younger girl sternly. "Either rip the band-aid off and break up with her or get your act together and stop neglecting her."

Is that what she's been doing, neglecting her? Oh god, it must be tearing the redhead apart. The girl was abused and neglected by the village and now she was doing something similar. Oh god she was only sparring with her. What has she done?

Kurenai sees the look of dawning realization and says, "I'm not going to train you if you keep abandoning her. Until you fix things you're on your own. This isn't a lesson I've taught you guys because this team has had little issue functioning together. But an old classmate of mine, and another friend, had a saying. Those who break the rules are scum, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum." The first half didn't really apply here, but she thought the lesson would be appropriate none the less.

Hinata nods and runs off, she has to find her girlfriend and apologize. Training obsessively isn't worth it if it means losing Naru-chan in the process. She's the whole reason she's training so hard to begin with. And she hadn't told her the truth to stop her from worrying. But it must feel like Hinata just isn't interested in talking to her. She had tried to protect her but she only made things worse. She had to find her!

* * *

Hinata wasn't surprised to find the redhead at the park where they first met, it had become the place they went when they were feeling down. She wondered how often Naruko had been here alone in the past month. The park had fallen into disrepair over the years, likely in part by civilians not wanting to finance the park Naruko was so fond of. She was quietly sitting on the swings. She seemed smaller than usual, it only made Hinata feel worse. The white eyed girl noticed the redheads hair was forming horns. The girl was using her nature transformation. Which meant she knew Hinata was there. The redhead didn't say anything, she just kept quietly swinging.

The white eyed girl walked over and sat on the swing next to the redhead. They sat in silence for several minutes before they both spoke at the same time.

"I'm sorry."

The two blink in surprise as they hear the other speak. Naruko goes first. "I'm sorry for upsetting you Hina-chan. You probably hate me for losing your hand over me. Even if you told me it was worth it. And then I probably made it worse by spending time with Sasuke. I-I'm sorry I didn't notice how you felt. I-It's just-"

Hinata can feel her heart breaking as Naru-chan speaks. She can't let her think it's her fault. "No! Naru-chan, it's all my fault. I've been to obsessed with training, and have been keeping things from you because I thought it would worry you." Hinata stands and cups the redheads face, well she half cups the redheads face. "I can see now that was wrong. I'm sorry Naru-chan, I'll tell you everything from now on." She wiped one of the tears that had started to gather in the redheads eyes.

Naruko nods slowly, waiting for the other girl to continue. "If I don't win the upcoming chunin exams then I'll be forced into marriage early. Either that or sealed and placed in the branch family." Well now the obsessive training makes sense.

"So you don't hate me?"

"I still love you more than you could ever know. But I have to train harder than ever to make sure we can stay together." Naruko nods in understanding. "I know now that thought is wrong. Ignoring you to try and stay with you is not the way to go about this. If I can't enjoy my time with you then there is no point." She smiles gently at the redhead. "Can you forgive me?"

"I could never be mad at you Hina-chan. I love you too much for that." She leans forward and locks lips with the heiress. She had to admit, it's been to long since they've done this.

* * *

Things had returned to normal with Team 7 after that. Hinata was still training harder than ever, but now she was at least taking the time to spend time with her girlfriend. Kurenai had seen that everything was back to normal and nodded at that. She thinks Naruko might have been too willing to forgive Hinata, but as long as this never happens again she wouldn't interfere.

The group had started taking more missions, having finished another two bandit exterminations. There were only two real highlights between the two of them. The first was that Naruko learned she could drain people directly. She hadn't thought to ask if she used it against Utakata, and no one brought it up (they thought it might make her uncomfortable to hear about her blackout). She had attempted to drain a bandit. She had not only succeeded but thanks to him not being a ninja the drain had instantly killed him from the chakra exhaustion. The second highlight was that Sasuke had received the third, and final, tomoe of his Sharingan. He wasn't entirely sure why it came. He hadn't been in any real danger, he had just been killing bandits as usual. He wasn't going to complain, it made him stronger at no cost.

The entire team had been surprisingly ambivalent about their first kills. They had finished three bandit extermination missions now and the kids still hadn't had a freak out over the killing, Kurenai wasn't sure if that bode well or poorly for their futures as ninja. The ambivalence likely stems from the fact that all of them had seen death early into their childhoods. Not to mention Sasuke's goal is still to kill Itachi.

The Team was currently having another team dinner at Sasuke's place. It had sort of just become the place where they have dinners together. The Hyuuga clan compound was to suffocating and Kurenai didn't let her genin know where she was living as they still hadn't found out for joining her morning training. Though Naruko actually had thanks to her nature transformation, she just never brought it up.

The team didn't hate Naruko's apartment, but most of them had a hard time navigating the ever growing amount of plants that was consuming the whole apartment complex. It was sort of like Naruko was living in a small forest that was inside her building. No one on the team really knew how she managed to get the plants to grow so quickly. Hinata's theory was that the redhead was channeling nature energy in her sleep and the excess was going back out into her plants. And it was somehow creating a feedback loop, like she was making more plants from it which then produced more energy for her. She and Naruko still hadn't told any members of the team about the fact that the nature transformation existed. They also hadn't asked despite having seen it in action a few times now. So they didn't really see a problem with it. It's not like they even knew why Naruko could do it.

"Hey Sasuke do you ever find yourself seeking answers more than revenge?" It was the redhead who piped up.

"Sometimes, Itachi told me he killed the clan to test himself, but if he really wanted to test himself he could have killed the Hokage or the Hyuuga clan, no offense Hinata." The Hyuuga clan likely would have been harder as all members of the clan are trained combatants unlike the Uchiha which had the largest civilian percentage of members out of any clan. Not only that but with the Byakugan at their disposal stealth would have been harder to use and it would have made for a greater challenge. Not to mention that they were, and still are, the largest clan in Konoha.

"None taken."

"But at the same time his reason don't matter that much, he still killed the clan. And he still made me watch it over and over again."

"How'd he do that?" Naruko was confused.

"Using an advanced form of the Sharingan, the Mangekyo. It can cast a unique Genjutsu that is inescapable." Kurenai perks up at that, the mere concept sounds amazing to her.

"How do you get the Mangekyo?"

"Killing the person closest to you." The three women collectively grimace, never mind that power is not worth it. "I don't know much else about it, I need the Mangekyo to find out more."

"Why's that?"

"Hidden in the compound there is a stone that describes how to ascend the Sharingan. To read it one needs a Sharingan, and to read even further one needs a Mangekyo." Hinata freezes, that sounds familiar.

"Wait, are you saying it's this weirdly indecipherable text that requires a higher level of your ocular prowess to read?"

"That's a longer way to say it, but yeah. Why?"

"The Hyuuga have something similarly indecipherable, but we have no idea how to read it."

"Well if we supposedly have the same ancestor, then maybe you also have a higher level Byakugan that can be unlocked. Though I couldn't begin to tell you how. Not unless you plan on trying to kill Naruko. And we all know that would never happen." He's right, but still the notion that they've been using a weaker Byakugan than what's possible. It almost makes her shiver with excitement. So then if she unlocked it would she be able to read the texts?

Kurenai speaks up. "Are you two supposed to be sharing this information? It sounds like clan secrets."

Hinata and Sasuke look at each other then at Kurenai. "Well it doesn't interfere with village law, so you have no reason to report it. And we can keep it a secret between the four of us."

Kurenai shrugs, she didn't really care. As long as it didn't bite them or her in the ass she's not going get in the way.

Naruko speaks up with a bit of a pout. "No fair, you two get to have all these clan secrets to explore and I'm stuck here. All of my super cool stuff is on an island hundreds of miles away." Well that's assuming it somehow didn't get looted when Uzushio was destroyed.

Hinata pats her girlfriend on the back. "No worries, when you're my wife these will be our clan secrets, not just mine."

Kurenai looks at the two. "So have you actually proposed to Naruko or are you just seeding the idea that she's inevitably going to be your wife?"

Hinata looks at the older woman. "Well I haven't proposed or anything like that. But she's going to be my wife regardless."

"Well what about how she feels?"

"Okay, Naru-chan do you not want to be my wife in the future?"

"Well I dunno, apparently you can't be my wife if I'm yours. So maybe I won't." Hinata just stares at her and the redhead sighs. "You never let me play hard to get. Yeah when the day comes I'll certainly be your wife. But don't think just because it's gonna happen you can get away with not proposing." Hinata nods.

"Don't worry when the day comes my proposal is going to blow your mind."

"Good."

Sasuke sighs. "Do you two always have to flirt at dinner?"

They both look at him and speak in unison. "Yes."

"Ugh, get a room."

"Sorry, but I'm not taking her virginity until we're sixteen." Sasuke and Kurenai blink owlishly at Hinata. "What, I don't want our first time to be as kids. I'm pretty sure that's how people end up becoming discontent with adult partners."She didn't have proof or anything like that, but she want's Naruko to be into her as a woman, not a girl. She looks at them and they're still staring at her. "Oh, you're confused by how up front I am about this. Well what did you expect, we're going to have to consummate the marriage at some point."

"So that's why you never made moves on me. I always thought it was weird. Like I see you staring at my ass all the time but you've never even made an attempt to touch it. Even though I'm sure you know I wouldn't mind" That was enough to draw a blush from Hinata.

Kurenai coughs, "To much information, Naruko."

"Really how come?" The older woman gestures to the other two blushing kids.

"We don't really need to know that you're willing to let Hinata touch you, nor do we need to know that she stares." Naruko nods not really getting it.

"So then should I not mention that whenever we fall asleep at my place she's always hugging me from behind and always seems to be in between groping my-" She didn't get to finish as a now very red Hinata covers her mouth.

"No Naru-chan, they definitely don't need to hear that. Now stop licking my hand."

"But Hina-chan it tastes like cinnamon." Naruko whines.

Sasuke pipes up again. "Seriously again with the flirting." Naruko sticks her tongue out at him. "I hate you so much sometimes."

"Whatever you know you love us." Once she says that she pulls him and Hinata into a group hug. "I'm to small to pull you, so you better get that fine ass in here Kurenai-sensei."

Well it's annoying but she'd certainly rather her genin be like this compared to when they first returned from wave. "You know you're like a little sister or a daughter to me. So that's kind of weird."

"Hey Hina-chan, you're not the only one with a hot mom now." Kurenai crashes to the ground, she only made it worse for herself.

The genin laugh at their sensei. This is why they loved their team dinners, it was nice and always managed to make the kids smile. Not to mention they got to see Kurenai when she's not being all stern. They couldn't help but hope things could stay like this forever.

* * *

A/N Holy mother of late chapter. Sorry about it taking so long, I got sick Wednesday and didn't start to feel better until Yesterday. I tried writing but once I went back and reread what I wrote while sick I ended up scrapping large portions of the chapter, they were just so bad. Anyways excuses aside I'm sorry about the delay. I can't promise it won't happen again, but hopefully it won't happen for a while. Anyways as always I'll be interested to know what you all thought of the chapter. Also when I post the chapter after this one I'll be taking down the poll, so if you haven't voted yet I encourage you to do so.

Also I'm pretty sure this is the first chapter since Academy Days that there has been zero fighting (I'm not really counting the bandit mission). I'm kind of curious, do you all like my fight scenes? Or do you just accept them because this is still a Naruto fanfiction and it's kind of to be expected? Regardless they're not going anywhere but I'd still like to know.

Also Seriously, next time a long break between chapters is coming I'll try and warn you all (Like if I'm on vacation of something). I don't like that it took me so long to write this chapter but I couldn't in good faith release what I wrote while I was sick. Like I had this whole scene with Jiraiya originally where for no reason he was teaching the genin. It actually made no sense and was like three pages of pure awful. It's not like it was in my chapter outline either, it was just sort of there because I added it last minute. In the end I'm much happier with the final version of this chapter and I can't wait to hear what you all think.

CM 11/11/2018


	11. The Monkey and the Toad

Naruko found herself standing outside of the Hokage's office. She hadn't actually been here in a while. Since the last bandit extermination two months ago she hadn't had any missions that saw combat. Mostly the team was back to doing D-ranks and a few easy C-ranks. Though they always seemed to be given trouble from clients when they saw Hina-chan's missing hand.

The redhead had been called for to the office for some reason. She could faintly hear yelling coming from inside the office. She looked curiously at the secretary, she had been told she could go ahead and knock, but it definitely sounded like she couldn't. Whoever was doing the yelling was upset about the fourth Hokage's legacy. Whatever that meant.

She shrugs and goes for broke. She knocks on the door to the office and the shouting stops. "Enter." She opens the door and walks in. The Hokage is inside, looking old as ever. Though he kind of looked older than usual, like he was just tired. Not far from the aged kage was a white haired man. Naruko thought he might be part giant. He was one of the tallest people she had ever seen, He was only a little shorter than Kaguya. He had a wart on his nose and red lines going down from his eyes. His hair was almost as long as hers, though his wasn't restrained like hers. Instead of the usual Konoha forehead protector he wore one that had the kanji for oil on it.

"You requested me Hokage-sama?" The older man nods and says.

"Yes Naruko-chan, this is Jiraiya, my student. I thought you two should be acquainted." Jiraiya snorts.

"Acquainted is one way to put it. I should have been raising her. Or at least Tsunade should have." Naruko looks at him curiously, why should he have been raising her? He looks like he is about to answer her before the Hokage speaks.

"Don't push it Jiraiya."

"Sensei she is willing to leave the village, and you called me back to change that. And you think I'm going to keep our connection a secret?" Jiraiya's tone was dumbfounded. "You're losing it." The Hokage sighs and nods. "And don't think we're done talking about why exactly she's willing to leave. You better pray that when Tsunade finds out what you've done you're on the other side of the continent or dead already." The Slug Princess would grind the man into dust. Jiraiya certainly wasn't going to keep it from her. He already had his spies working on finding her location.

"So are you going to tell me how we should know each other or not?"

"I'm your godfather."

"Oh. So where've you been?" She didn't seem to particularly care that he wasn't there for her. She was going to tell Hina-chan later. The white eyed girl would be mad enough for her anyways.

"I run the villages spy network. I've been out of the village pretty much constantly since you were born." He wasn't going to tell the girl that the main reason was the Sandaime's lies. He had no intention of using her, but it would break her fathers heart if he found out she abandoned the village. Even if he would understand why. "Though I did send you a wallet for your birthday a few years ago."

Naruko nods, knowing the one he was talking about. Though that raised another question, "So how come that's the only thing you ever sent me?" She had only ever been given one thing addressed by him.

"It's because everything else is too valuable to trust a courier with." Either because it had high monetary value, or was to powerful. "I had meant to drop by but work always kept me away and unable to deliver them."

Naruko nods in understanding. She had only really been curious because the tall man seemed upset that he wasn't there for her. She'd certainly appreciate gifts, who wouldn't? But she didn't need them, Hina-chan always seemed weirdly intent on spoiling her anyways. "So then you're here to make sure I'm loyal to the village?"

"I'm here to right the wrongs he caused you." He says jerking a thumb towards the Hokage. "And in the process hopefully show you why, even after everything I've lost, I still love the village. And more than anything to let you know that there are more people in the village who love you kid."

"Sorry, I'm not into guys."

"What? No you misunderstand, I mean platonic love."

"I was joking, Sasuke already taught me the difference between the two." So she still didn't have tones down perfectly. "Though it is the truth. I'm into girls." The man seemed weirdly pleased by that. He pulled out a small notepad and started writing something in it. She had never seen a reaction like that before. She'd have to ask her teammates about it, Hina-chan wasn't the only person she could ask anymore (though she still went to her girlfriend most the time). "So do you know who my dad is?"

"Are you not curious about your mom? You look just like her you know."

Much to both men's surprise the redhead nods. "I already know about Kaa-chan."

The Hokage asks, "How did you find out?"

"People have a bad habit of calling me Kushina when they first see me. Then it just took meeting someone who knew and asking." The Hokage wasn't really surprised, the girl was smaller than her mother was at that age, but other than that she looked just like the woman. "So are you going to tell me about my dad or not?"

Jiraiya nods. "I'll tell you, but know that you cannot tell anyone, because this is an S-rank secret."

"Oh then never mind. I don't wanna know if I have to keep things from Hina-chan." She told the other girl everything, well assuming she remembered to tell her. She still hadn't told her about Kagura's siblings, cause she keeps forgetting.

"Why are you so intent on not keeping secrets from the Hyuuga heiress?" The Toad Sage knew they were friends, but even friends keep secrets.

"She's my girlfriend." The man giggles at that and scribbles more notes. She really didn't get it.

Jiraiya looks at the Hokage. "She deserves to know, I'm sure it's fine if the Hyuuga heiress finds out."

Hiruzen was tempted to say no, but sighed. The girl was going to have to find out someday. And perhaps he could use this. So after a moment he nods at the Toad Sage.

"Alright then, you can tell your girlfriend. Your dad is the Yondaime Hokage. Namikaze Minato."

"Wow I look nothing like him."

"You certainly inherited your mothers looks. Though it seems like you have more of your dads temperament." The girl was far to calm to be like Kushina in personality. "You're taking this pretty well."

"Should I be mad?"

"Well he did seal the demon inside you."

"Yeah but he's not the one who told the whole village. He did what he thought was right to save the place he loved." She wouldn't fault the man. She felt odd. She held no real love for the man, she had never met him and he hadn't been there for her. But she feels a strange yearning for him, similar to how she felt for her mother or Uzushio. She supposed that's just how family is. She can't explain why she cares despite never having met her parents, she just did.

The Toad Sage smiles at her. "It's a relief you don't hate him, he was like a son to me."

"So what was he like?"

"He was an idealist, perhaps to a fault, who despite being an orphan never stopped believing in the good of others. He was also powerful, Despite his young age he had almost reached SS-rank at the time of his death." He would have been the second Hokage to do so. "You have no idea how much he cherished the idea of family. He was looking forward to treating you like his little princess." Wasn't that what Kurenai-sensei said about Kaa-chan too? "He would have accepted your being gay with little trouble. Though he might have whined about never getting grand kids to spoil. The man was totally cool headed most the time, but around the people he cared for he was much kinder, and much more relaxed."

The aged kage couldn't help but smile, he always was fond of his successor. It truly is a shame the man died so early into his career. Yes he had no doubt the man would have found a way to make the village happy without sacrificing his child. But Hiruzen always had and always will do the best he can for the village. He thought Minato would do the same, but the man's youth might have let him see a solution he had missed. Well no use crying over it now, what's done is done.

Before Naruko can voice her next question the door to the office is kicked open and a kid runs in. He had brown hair and an overly large scarf. He was also wearing a strange helmet that Naruko thought was almost as bizarre as Tenten (she still had trouble with the girl). Naruko was a bit lost in thought and hadn't heard him speak. She didn't miss however that the kid tripped on his own scarf. She quickly catches him before he hits the ground. "You should wrap this scarf up better. See my hair? I keep it up like this to stop from tripping."

"I didn't trip on my scarf! You tripped me!" Naruko blinks in surprise as the boy jumps out of her hands.

She looks to the Hokage and raises an eyebrow, the man sighs and says. "Meet my grandson Sarutobi Konohamaru." She looks back at the kid, he looks weirdly smug and upset at the same time. Weird.

"Your name is too long." He looks at her weirdly, she can't place it. "I guess calling you 'kid' will work." The boy looks indignant at that.

"You can't just call me 'kid' I'm the Hokage's grandson!" As if by fate at that moment another man bursts into the room.

"Honorable Grandson! There you are, come we must get back to your training." Naruko looks back at the kid.

"Would you rather I call you that? Cause there's no way that's happening. Whatever, Jiraiya we can talk later. I'm sure you can find me whenever. See you later Hokage-sama, and Kono too." The boy blinks in surprise at the nick name. He can't help but stare as she walks out of the room.

"Jiji who was that?"

"That was Uzumaki Naruko, she's been a genin for a few months now. Though don't let that fool you, she's taken on S-rank nin." Hiruzen of course was lying by omission, but he thought this would do his grandson some good. It seemed to be working as the boy had stars in his eyes. He ran out of the room before Ebisu could react.

The three remaining men in the room looked at each other. Finally Jiraiya spoke to Ebisu, "Aren't you gonna go after him?"

"I'm waiting, he doesn't realize it but I always give him a head start. I'm training him in evasion by letting him run off." The other two nod, well that explains how Konohamaru always managed to get away from the jonin.

"So he's going after Naruko right?" The Toad Sage snorts.

"Oh for sure. Speaking of, Ebisu you should probably get going, we weren't finished talking about her." Ebisu nods and leaves the room. The kage gulps. Jiraiya was always the scariest when angry, because he never got angry externally. So when he was enraged, he was _enraged._ Of course he could argue Tsunade was worst because she could crush a mountain with one blow. "I'm not going to ask why you sacrificed her. I know you thought it was for the best. No I want to know why you forced Kurenai to stop raising her, forbade both Kakashi and Rin from talking to her at all. And of course lied to me, blatantly, in your letters."

"Kurenai was stagnating while raising her. Kakashi and Rin would have too. I needed to make sure you were focused on the spy network, not on a child."

"That's bullshit and you know it! I could have raised her on the go, not only keeping her out of sight of the villagers, quelling their hatreds through lack of contact, and still kept up the spy network."

"The road is no-"

"I will break your jaw if you finish that sentence. Don't you dare tell me the road is no place for a child! Not when you decided the place for a child is one where she'll be publicly abused and malnourished! Look at her, both her parents were tall for their age, but she's tiny. That's what not being given proper nutrition for years does to a child! So no, I'm sure the road will have been a fine place for her."

"But she forged bonds here in the village."

"Yes and those bonds are the only thing keeping her in the village, there is no patriotism involved. If something happens and these people die, then she won't hesitate to leave. And with so much unbridled power inside her she could likely come back to destroy the village one day. Sensei you might have helped the village in the short term but you've done catastrophic damage in the long term."

"So then I should dispose of the girl?"

"You've forgotten how sealing works. When you destroy a scroll containing kunai the kunai don't disappear, they all come out at once. That's how all variations of storage seals work, and I'd assume this one too."

"So she's a bomb to be set off in a rival village if we ever go to war." He could certainly use that.

"Sensei I will be blunt. If you harm even a single hair on her head all three Sannin will be missing nin." That was enough to get Hiruzen's attention. He couldn't afford to lose Jiraiya, the man was the only person currently fit to replace him as Hokage. Tsunade would be have been considered loyal, but after the Anbu who was sent to tell her about Naruko was found dead at her last known location it was assumed she betrayed them. Though he hadn't added her to any bingo books because the cause of death was suspicious. But he unofficially considered her a missing nin as did Jiraiya.

Jiraiya was still fond of both his teammates. Sure Orochimaru was a sick and twisted bastard, but they had been best friends until the end. He wonders sometimes if the man would like to just get drinks sometimes. He held no hatred for his teammate and he liked to think the feeling is mutual. Of course he still had to bring him to justice, but he could never truly hate his teammates.

\ "Fine, unless the girl betrays the village then I won't allow anymore harm to come to her." They both knew he meant by the villagers, they couldn't stop her from getting hurt in spars or missions.

"Now then I believe there is a girlfriend you never told me about properly." He only ever got told they were close friends.

* * *

Naruko and Hina-chan were currently sparring. The white eyed girl had gotten a lot better in the past few months, but things weren't quite back to normal. Where before the Hyuuga would win about nine times for every one win of Naruko's now it was more like she would win seven for every five. Naruko didn't mind. The fact that Hina-chan was winning more than her again just meant she was slowly getting back to her old self. Today however is not one of those days where Hina-chan wins as Naruko quickly finds herself connecting a foot to the other girls ribs. The white eyed girl winces and they stop there. They have different kinds of spars and today's was major contact. Essentially whoever could land a blow to a major part of the body (head, neck, ribs, etc.) first wins. It's mainly to focus on how to both dodge and properly target the opponent to maximize damage dealt.

"So you know we're being watched by some kid right?"

"Yeah he's been following me around for a few days now. I think he doesn't realize I can see through his disguises." Hinata nods in understanding, he was probably only eight or so and she wouldn't get mad at him following her around. She feels like she should recognize him but she can't put her finger on it.

"Any idea why?"

"Probably because I stopped him from falling over, oh and I didn't call him 'Honorable Grandson'." Ah, that explains why Hinata recognized him. He had been to a few of Hanabi's birthday parties because they were both in the same class and are clan kids. And of course he is the Sandaime's grandson. "I'm gonna call him out on it I guess, wanna come with or naw?" Hinata wasn't sure. Actually, no, Hinata wasn't going to go. She'd spy on her girlfriend, she wants to see how her future wife will handle kids. She had to tell herself it wasn't weird. But ultimately it didn't matter as Naru-chan wouldn't care anyways, she'd likely just wonder how it matters.

"No, I think I'll stay and get a bit more training in, see you at dinner?" The two had plans to have dinner at Naruko's place tonight. It was something they had started doing after the incident with Hinata ignoring the redhead. Once a week they would always have a meal alone together, typically at Naruko's apartment.

Naruko nods and gives her girlfriend a quick kiss. "See you around Hina-chan, maybe go have Sasuke heal those ribs before you continue training."

That's a good idea, she can drag Sasuke along too, it'll be fun. And she really could use his healing. He had gotten a lot better in the past few months at Medical Jutsu, he really did have a natural talent for it. If she had to guess he was on par with most high chunin level medics. She watches her girlfriend leave and quickly takes off to go find Sasuke.

Naruko approached the poorly concealed boy who was hiding up against a tree. "So why have you been stalking me Kono?"

"Just as I expected, you saw through my masterful disguise with ease. Naruko-chan, please teach me!" Why did he call her chan? She barely knew him.

"Why do you want me to teach you? Don't you already have a jonin?"

"Yeah but you're a genin and have already taken on S-rank nin. If you teach me I'm sure I can find the shortcut to being Hokage."

"I think the shortcut is to be trained by previous kage, or previous kage's students." Every Hokage except the first (for obvious reasons) had been either taught by the first to some degree or taught by another kage or their student. "So I guess just get good luck when you become a genin."

The boy wasn't satisfied with that answer and whines, "But I want to be taught by you."

"I still don't get whats wrong with the other guy."

"All he does is prattle about how important the basics are."

"Well they are important, but I guess I can see where that gets frustrating."

"So will you teach me any cool Jutsu?"

"Well you probably don't have the chakra control for Genjutsu yet." She didn't see the problem in teaching an eight year old how to make others view hell. "And Fuinjutsu would take to long. My Taijutsu style probably won't fit you. So I guess a ninjutsu will do."

The boys eyes were sparkling with excitement. The redhead continues. "I guess I'll teach you one of the Academy three." Teaching him elemental jutsu might be too intensive if he learns something he doesn't have the affinity for. "You'll learn this in a few years anyways, but it will put you ahead of your pears. How does the **Henge no Jutsu** (Transformation Technique) sound? You seem to like espionage and being able to become another person at will would be pretty cool." He was about to protest but hearing her say it like that made it seem so cool.

Naruko could swear she heard faint shifting from the bushes. She goes stock still for all of three seconds before her hair rises and she feels her teammates hiding in the bushes. So Hina-chan lied cause she wanted to watch? Well she didn't mind. She hadn't noticed before but it was now apparent that Kurenai was watching too. Though she was hiding from the others as well. Why is her whole team watching her interact with the kid? As quickly as her hair lifts it falls. "Alright I'll show you the hand sign and perform the Jutsu so you can get an idea. Then just try transforming into someone you know, or me cause I'm right in front of you." She does as explained and standing in the clearing now is a perfect copy of Hinata. Then with a puff of smoke she transforms back.

"Watch this!" He repeats her and uses the Jutsu, but when he's revealed it's only a morbidly obese redhead.

"Who's that supposed to be?"

"You."

Over in the bush Sasuke and Hinata had to resist laughing for fear of being caught. They knew Naruko wouldn't be insulted but it was still funny.

"I think you have the proportions a little to wide. You have the idea right but you need to make it thinner." The boy nods and performs the Jutsu again, he managed to get it slightly thinner but all in all the success was minimal. "Hmm this isn't working, try becoming a man for me." He does so and actually does it with no issue. The kid had talent, he just seemed to be having trouble becoming female. "Alright I think you need to get a better idea of what women look like. Follow me." She starts walking off, not waiting to see if he did as told.

Hinata had a weird feeling Naruko was about to accidentally send the wrong message, but it was to amusing to stop. She and Sasuke quietly follow after them.

The two, and their followers, arrive at one of Konoha's many bath houses. "Naruko-chan why are we here?"

"I figure if you see women with nothing obstructing them you'll get a better idea." The boy nods, that made sense. Well he thinks it does. "Just walk in and tell them you're looking for your Kaa-chan. You're young enough to make it work."

"Why are you not going in?"

"Because if I went in and you saw me naked then you'd have to die." She wouldn't care, not truly, he's only a kid. But Hina-chan would probably kill him.

Over on the rooftop Hinata nods, no one gets to see her girlfriend naked but her.

With that Konohamaru walks into the women side of the bathhouse. He walk out a few minutes later with a weird look on his face. "How'd it go?"

"They weren't mad at me but for some reason I got a lot of hugs and they made this weird squealing."

"Alright well now you should try the Henge again. Try becoming me again, you should have a better idea." The boy nods and performs the Jutsu. In his place is a tall and buxom redhead, she looked like Naruko. Except she was too tall and too buxom. Naruko was far more petite then that. Naruko wasn't phased.

Hinata was weirdly angry and pleased. What can she say, even if it's wrong it's still her naked girlfriend, and she enjoyed looking. But on the other hand the boy was putting her naked girlfriend on display and would have to suffer for his transgressions. She looked to her right and found Sasuke out cold with a nosebleed. She would probably have been the same if he made it really look like her. Though now that she knows what he's doing the surprise won't be able to get her.

"The transformation is much better, but still flawed. I'm much smaller than that. And my boobs aren't so big." She eyes the blood running down the side of the building. "Though I'd recommend saving that form, or at least something similar, for use against perverts. Now try again, and don't make the boobs so big." He nods and this time he produces a near perfect copy of Naruko, it's still naked for some reason. "Better, that is much closer to my actual proportions. Though I'd recommend putting some clothes on this transformation or you'll be in trouble." The boy didn't get it but performs it again. This time a perfect copy of Naruko, with clothes, appears. Any discrepancies are hidden under the clothes. "Congrats Kono, it seems to me like you have the Jutsu down. Though I'd recommend practicing it some more."

Sasuke had woken up and was having to restrain Hinata from going down and slaughtering the kid. He heard faint snickering and found Kurenai-sensei on another rooftop laughing at his plight. How long had she been there?

The jonin from earlier, Naruko hadn't learned his name, finally arrived. "Honorable Grandson, come with me we must get back to your training." He looks towards Naruko and wrinkles his nose. "Come you have nothing to gain by spending time with that dead last." He didn't particularly hate her for the beast, though he certainly didn't like her. But she barely passed the academy and couldn't possibly help the Honorable Grandson.

Konohamaru didn't take kindly to this and calls out " **Oiroke no Jutsu** (Sexy Technique)." Naruko was surprised he already named it. It was still just a Henge. Well what ever floats his boat. The jonin seemed non pulsed by it.

"What sort of vulgarities have you been teaching him?!"

"Hey that's all him, I was just teaching him the **Henge no Jutsu** (Transformation Technique).Kono, go ahead and show him." The boy nods and drops his previous transformation, this time becoming a copy of the jonin. The man had to admit, it was good. He wasn't happy about it but at least this didn't seem worthless.

"I see, well come along then, we still have training to do." The girl hadn't taught him anything useless so he'd let it slide this time.

"No! I want Naruko-chan to teach me!"

Hinata had noticed but only now bothered to question why exactly the boy was calling her girlfriend by the "-chan" suffix.

"Sorry Kono but I don't have time to teach you all the time. I still gotta get strong so I can protect my loved ones." The boy looks down trodden at that but then perks up.

"Then you're my rival for position of Hokage! Cause the Hokage protects everyone!"

Almost simultaneously the members of team 7 mutter under their breath bitterly "Not everyone."

"Sorry Kono, but I have no interest in being Hokage."

"But you're so strong, why wouldn't you want to be Hokage?"

"Because that position requires a deep seeded love for the village. Not to mention the respect of the village at large. I have neither and as such don't want to be the Hokage. But if that's what you want you have my support. So that's one villager backing you already, now you just gotta work for everyone else."

"Fine then if you won't be my rival then when we're older you'll be my wife." He says with a small blush. He had a crush on the pretty girl, what could he say.

"No." Rejection was swift and ruthless. It also came from both Naruko and Hinata, who Sasuke couldn't stop from jumping down. The white eyed girl speaks.

"She's going to be my wife, and I don't appreciate you making moves on my girlfriend." She wasn't going to harm the kid, because he was still a kid and didn't know better.

"But girls can't like each other!" He didn't say it out of spite or malice, just from a childish misunderstanding of love.

"That's not true, I've been in love with her for years. One day you'll learn that love comes in many forms."

"Then you're my rival white eyes!" Naruko wasn't expecting this at all. She certainly hadn't been expecting Hina-chan to get another rival, not that any of them had a chance. Though Hina-chan for some reason seemed to think that just because Fuu kissed her that meant the green haired girl actually had a chance. The boy didn't get to finish his rant as the jonin grabs him.

"Well, thank you for teaching him Naruko-san. Now come along Honorable Grandson, you have lessons to learn." The two are left alone and finally Naruko calls out.

"So are you two gonna come down and join us?" An instant later Kurenai and Sasuke were on the ground with the other two. The red eyed woman speaks up.

"You know I never thought you would be a teacher. It kind of suits you." Naruko shrugs, she only taught him cause it seemed like fun. "Also you really didn't seem bothered by the fact that he turned into a naked version of you."

"Should I be? It's not like he was trying to be insulting about it. Though it is a little weird to me that the eight year old thinks I'm sexy." She didn't even start to notice other peoples bodies until she was twelve, which she's still twelve, but maybe she's the weird one.

A new voice pops up, one Naruko and Kurenai recognize. "That's probably because all the men in his family are closet pervs, and he gets it from them."

"Oh Jiraiya when did you get here?"

"Around the time he walked into the hot spring." He wasn't going to say he had been peeping. He was in no mood to have Kurenai attack him.

"Naru-chan did you call him Jiraiya? As in the Sannin?"

Naruko nods and the white haired man continues. "I see my reputations proceeds me. I take it you're the squirts girlfriend?" Hinata nods.

"Nice to meet you Jiraiya-san."

Sasuke looks at Naruko and Hinata and then asks "How do you know him?"

"He's my godfather." Kurenai isn't surprised she knows.

"So did he know your mother?" Last he heard Naruko still didn't know who her dad is.

"He knew both my parents. I'll tell you who Tou-chan is later, I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to say it in public." Sasuke nods, she probably wasn't even supposed to be admitting this.

"It's been a while Jiraiya."

"Look at you all grown up, last time I saw you, you were barely older than them." He says jerking a thumb to the kids. "How's about you and me go get dinner sometime?"

"As friends sure." She says smiling sweetly. She remembers how often he would hit on Kunoichi when she was a kid. He had never asked her or Yugao, but she guessed that's because he's not a pedophile. Also probably because Kushina would have beat him half to death if he even tried.

The man doesn't deflate in the slightest. "Some women just have no taste. Oh well, you're not my type anyways." Not true, all women who were even a little attractive were his type. But he only ever loved one woman and that would always be unrequited. "I heard Gai's become even weirder."

Kurenai snorts, "You have no idea." They were still old friends and could use some catching up.

Naruko speaks up now, "So were you just here to ask Kurenai-sensei out? Not that I don't get it, she's pretty hot." Jiraiya laughs.

"I think we'll get along real well kid." He couldn't have asked for a better goddaughter. She truly understood the finer things in life! "But no, I'm here with the offer to train you. I should have been doing it years ago anyways."

"No thanks."

"What?" He was dumbfounded.

"Kurenai-sensei is doing a great job training me, and I respect her too much to just go to another sensei." Kurenai coos and scoops the other girl up into a hug. Naruko struggles in vain to try and break free. She'd probably have a better time if she released her seals.

"Aka-chan you're just too cute some times." Naruko stops struggling and looks at the woman confused.

"Aka-chan?"

"Oh, that's what I used to call you." Huh, she didn't know that. But she could barely remember those days. She's distracted by the sound of scribbling and giggling. Jiraiya is furiously taking notes.

"Jiraiya why do you always take notes while giggling?"

"You're a creative gold mine kid. I'm a writer you see."

"Oh cool, can I read your book?"

"You really are the best!" Before Naruko can respond the other two women do.

"No!" They look at each other and then Kurenai continues. "I don't want you corrupting her."

"You can't let her read that, it'll ruin my plans!" Everyone turns to look at the heiress. What? "Oh, um. . . never mind."

"Wait Hina-chan does he write those orange books I always see you reading when you think I'm not looking? I don't get it, isn't it just some romance book?" The name just meant flirt so she didn't really get it. "Also how would it ruin your plans."

Kurenai was about to tell her, but Hinata silences them. "It's a secret, you'll find out when you're older."

"So it has something to do either with your plan to propose to me, or sex? Maybe both?" Those were the only things Hina-chan was putting off for when they're older so it's gotta be one of those. Team 7 collectively sighs, Naruko really didn't understand what not to say in public, or to people that aren't Hinata. Jiraiya was ecstatic, Kushina's daughter was fantastic! Though there is still the problem of Naruko not wanting him to teach her. He turns to Kurenai.

"Alright I'll ask you then, is it alright if I teach Naruko?"

"Hmm, no."

"What?! Why not?!"

"I don't want her to receive special treatment. So I'll let you teach her if you teach the other two." She was an elite jonin who saw an opportunity to have all of her students receive lessons from a Sannin, of course she was going to take it. Jiraiya looks like he's going to object so she casually says. "Oh well, I guess you won't get to see the two flirt all the time." They didn't actually flirt all the time, but she knew he'd take the bait.

"Dammit you win. You've gotten craftier over the years Kurenai. I'll give lessons to all of your students." He didn't truly mind, Hiashi had been one of his students so teaching his daughter wasn't an issue. "We can talk more about it later, I still have other things to do now that I'm back in the village." He's only been to one hot spring so far. The beauties of Konoha were waiting for him!

* * *

The Team was gathered in training ground 14. Jiraiya was finally making good on his promise to train them. They were all more than a little curious about what he had planned. The man appeared in a kabuki dance and they were all amazed. Before his ego could even inflate a little Naruko spoke. "I think that takes the cake for the weirdest thing I've ever seen." It was definitely amazing, just not like he thought.

"No Naru-chan, it's not weird, just profoundly dumb."

"Am I the only one who thinks it's cool?" The other two look at Sasuke weirdly. "What kabuki is a great art form."

"Sure, but that's," She points to the white haired man, "not cool, and isn't good kabuki."

"Not gonna lie Sasuke I never thought you of all people would like kabuki."

"My parents used to take me to shows when I was little." It was one of the few untainted memories of them he had left. The rest were ruined by the massacre.

"That's actually really sweet. Maybe we should go as a team sometime." Hinata was sure her girlfriend wouldn't mind.

"I'd like that."

Jiraiya turns to Kurenai and asks, "Do they treat you with this disrespect?"

"You have no idea." She can't count the number of times the two girls have blatantly talked about her body. Or how often the three of them collectively ignore her. Well at least they always listen when running drills and on missions.

"Alright brats, I'm gonna be teaching all of you Fuinjutsu."

"But that's Naruko's specialty, well one of them." The Uchiha had no problem with his friends specialty, but he wanted to learn more in his own.

"Sure, it's mine too. But all of my teammates learned it anyways. And it's good practice to at least be familiar with the art. Every previous Hokage has had some measure of proficiency in it."

"So are you just going to be teaching us how to make storage scrolls?" Jiraiya scoffs at the boy.

"No, contrary to popular belief there is no clear cut best starting point for Fuinjutsu. Most start with storage seals because they are easy and incredibly useful. They also have minimal backlash if you do something catastrophically wrong." The worse that would happen with a failed storage scroll is the item sealed inside being ruined, relatively harmless. Jiraiya seeing no more questions says. "Instead I'm going to be teaching each of you a different specialty. I'll be testing your affinities to see what suits you."

"But we all already know our chakra nature." It was Hinata who protested this time.

Jiraiya shakes his head. "It's a different kind of affinity. Most people have little natural ability to tell what a seal does. But they all have some natural ability to tell what certain types of seals do better than others. Like chakra they can have multiple affinities. So I'm going to present multiple seals to you and I want you to describe what they do for me. Naruko yours will be more complex since you already have an understanding of seals." The genin nod in understanding. It sort of made sense, though only barely. Well Naruko understood it better, as rare as that was. She remembered when she picked apart the resistance seal. The matrix had seemingly unraveled in her mind and she understood it. This was probably what Jiraiya was talking about.

"So who's going first?" Hinata questions.

"Since you were industrious enough to ask you can. There are five major categories of Fuinjutsu that all others technically fall under. They are in no particular order barrier seals, curse seals, space-time seals, elemental seals, and chakra seals. Sasuke and Naruko I'm going to have to ask you two to leave for a few minutes while we let the little Hyuuga take a crack at the seals. I'll send a clone to get you when we're done." The two genin nod and head off into the forest surrounding the training ground, might as well spar. Seeing them leave he pulls out five low level seals. One of each type he listed earlier. "Bare in mind you might have next to no affinity for seals in which case you likely won't be able to at all tell the effects. Now then, go ahead and take a crack at them." He lays them out onto the ground in a pentagon.

Hinata takes a look at each of them. She couldn't tell what most of them meant. She could read the Kanji but the other symbols made little sense to her. But looking at on of them, she notices something. Yes for sure. She points to it and says "This is a curse seal." Jiraiya nods and pulls it away. If she had other affinities it would help to get this one out of sight. She spends another minute looking them over before looking at another. Her gut was telling her it was an elemental seal. She told the man as much. He nods once more and then pulls it away. She spends a few more minutes but is unable to decipher any more (not that she was actually deciphering them).

He pulls the remaining seals away and speaks as he does so. "Alright looks like you have an affinity for curse seals and elemental seals. The former isn't really surprising, most Hyuuga with any talent in Fuinjutsu tend to have an affinity for them." Although the Hyuuga didn't actually create their caged bird seal. That was made by the Uzumaki clan and then changed by the Hyuuga.

"Aren't curse seals bad?"

"Not necessarily. A curse seal is any kind of seal that places some kind of negative affect onto a person. A resistance seal is a mix of a barrier seal and a curse seal." He says while pointing to her glove.

"So what kind of seals are storage seals?"

"They're actually a form of Space-Time seals. They store the items in a pocket dimension." That actually made a lot of sense.

"And what about Naruko's seal?"

"That is a work of art. It's a mix of an extremely advanced barrier seal, what can probably be described as the pinnacle of curse seals, and an incredibly powerful space-time seal. Oh and a chakra seal. To give a point of reference for how much of a masterpiece her seal is most seals only use one category, and the fourths signature jutsu was a mix of three. Each new category added to a seal makes it exponentially more difficult to make function properly, and to a lesser degree so do extra seals of the same category layered on top of one another." Of course it had to be that way, the more complex it is the harder it is to decipher as well. "I'll get into teaching you more once we know the others affinities." With that he makes a shadow clone that goes to fetch the next genin.

About three minutes later Sasuke arrives. He's scowling something fierce. Hinata had to stifle a laugh as she spots the bruise on his cheek, seems Naru-chan wasn't holding back. "Sasuke why not just heal the bruise?"

"It wasn't a bruise. She broke my jaw." Ah, well that explains the scowl. "I would have kept healing it but then Jiraiya appeared and wouldn't leave me alone until I stopped and came here."

"Right well it's time to test you. You're not trained in seals like the Hyuuga heiress so I'll be giving you simple ones." He repeats the process pulling out the same five seals as before. "It should go without saying, but I'll say it anyways. Hinata don't speak until he's done." The girl nods and he places them down.

Sasuke looks down at the seals. He almost instantly points to one and says. "This is a barrier seal." Jiraiya nods. He finds scrutinizing the others much more difficult and after several minutes of silence he sighs and shakes his head. "I can't tell anything about the others."

"Well you don't seem to have an affinity for the other seals, but you have a very high affinity for barrier seals."

"What did Hinata have?"

"She had a moderate affinity for both curse seals and elemental seals."

"So is it only worth learning barrier seals?"

"If you aren't planning on specializing in seals then yes. I'm a Fuinjutsu specialist and am highly proficient in all five categories, though I can only claim mastery of elemental seals and chakra seals. But my teammates only ever bothered to learn their affinities." The Uchiha nods and the Sannin makes a clone to go get Naruko.

She arrives much faster than the Uchiha only taking a few seconds. Jiraiya seeing her arrive pulls out five scrolls. Unlike the single sheets of paper the other two got. "Once again, the two who have already tested should keep quiet." This time it wasn't so they could tell what's what, but rather so they don't distract her.

Naruko chooses to just grab one of the scrolls and unrolls it. Like with the resistance seal so many months ago the matrix just seems to unravel in her mind. "This is a hybrid seal, it mixes both a space-time seal and a barrier seal. I think it's a prison seal right?" These were used to store people, as any seal that would store a living creature requires a barrier seal to keep it contained. Jiraiya nods and she moves on. The same process happens for the next scroll. "This is a double elemental seal, it looks like it absorbs fire chakra and then the second elemental seal redirects the chakra and fires it back, converting the users chakra to fire in the process to add to the strength." Once more the man nods. The other two genin were gaping increasingly wider. Naruko ignores them and moves on. "This is a curse seal, it's actually three different curse seals layered on top of each other. Along with a single chakra seal." Kurenai had to stifle a gasp as she looks at what's drawn on the scroll, that's Anko's seal! "It has a lot to it so I'll explain more later." Jiraiya had thought there was a chance of this happening. It seems the girl had an affinity for all of the categories, but she was an Uzumaki so that was to be expected. Though even Kushina was never this good at instantly deciphering seals.

"You don't have to continue, you've already proven your affinity for all five categories."

"Is it not alright if I look and see what the other two do anyways?" She wanted to take a look at the seals, it was interesting to her.

"I'll show you more later, for now I, and Kurenai too, would like to hear your analysis of that curse seal."

"Are you not able to fully decipher it?" She wouldn't have thought he would give her something he himself hadn't figured out.

"No. Curse seals have always been my weakest category and I've only been able to figure out how the first two curse seals work."

"Oh well, then as you probably already know the first layer is about how it digs into the users chakra network. It makes it so the user can't just stop channeling chakra through it to make it stop. That's how most curse seals work." The caged bird seal was the same, they're meant to be irremovable by the victim. "The second curse seal has an addictive property to it that makes it so when the user uses the seal they become dependent on it. It also warps the mind of the user." Jiraiya nods, he knew that much. "The third and final curse seal attaches the chakra of someone else to the seal and seems to embed their chakra into the persons network. Though this seal is empty as it's only on a scroll." Jiraiya knew who's chakra it belonged to, but would it not run out? He voices this concern. "No it won't, that's what the chakra seal does. It channels the energy nature emits into the seal and converts into something else along with the casters chakra."

Kurenai speaks up. "What energy are you talking about?"

"I knew I was forgetting something. You know how my hair stands up sometimes and I randomly have red eyeliner? That's what happens when I channel this energy. I always forget to bring it up. Oops." Hinata rolls her eyes, they've been a team for months and her girlfriend only now brought this up.

Jiraiya speaks up. "Can you channel this energy for me?"

"Sure." She does so and almost immediately activates her nature transformation.

"That's what I thought. Kid you're in Sage Mode."

"Sage Mode?"

"It's what happens when you channel nature chakra. It seems you're a perfect sage too."

"How am I a perfect sage?"

"There are no deformities, and you seem to need no aid."

"How do you know about this?"

"I'm a sage as well." Though he's not a perfect sage.

"Huh, well that explains a lot." She didn't really care about the terminology but at least she finally knew what it was. "So can anyone channel it?"

"Yeah but for most people they are at risk of turning to stone if they do. And generally it helps if they have summoning contract, though it's not necessary." Oh, well that's a little frightening. "So back to the matter at hand do you think you can potentially undue the seal?" The Uzumaki shakes her head.

"No, I'm good at recreating seals and deciphering them, but I'm not good at making my own seals and counter seals yet." Jiraiya nods in understanding. Simply knowing the full extent is enough for now. He had finally made some progress. "Right well, as you all might be able to tell by now Naruko here has a high affinity with all five major categories of sealing. Not surprising given your heritage. Both of your parents were seal masters and your mother had the same level of affinities."

"You know you only seem to be this astute when it comes to seals. Why can't the same happen for your common sense?"

"Whatever Sasuke just cause I'm not afraid to talk about how Hina-chan stares at my ass doesn't mean I don't have common sense."

"You're right, that doesn't mean you lack common sense. You lack common sense because you can't understand sarcasm or normal social gestures." Naruko pouts at that. Sure she might not get it but it didn't really matter. "Also you are terrible at detecting lies."

"Yeah but that's part of what makes her adorable." The Hyuuga heiress loved the naivete of her girlfriend, it was a part of her charm. She had come up behind her girlfriend and was rubbing her face against the smaller girls cheek.

"I think you two just flirt in front of me to annoy me at this point."

"That's part of it. But it also just because I love flirting with her." Jiraiya was giggling madly at this point. This was great material. "Jiraiya-san if I read anything resembling Naru-chan and I then I will castrate you." They already knew she read his books. Jiraiya rolls his eyes, he'd do it anyways. She was still just a genin.

"Right well, I'm aware of your schedule with Kurenai. So during her one on ones with one of you I'll be teaching one of the others the seals they have an affinity for. Then you'll rotate. I won't be teaching you on weekends, I am a busy man. But I don't mind taking time out of my weekdays to help." He had already agreed on this schedule with Kurenai so not as to interfere with her teams schedules. "I'll only be focusing on you all for the next three weeks, then I'm going to be too busy attending to other matters in the village." That was when the Chunin Exams would start and he'd be busy during that time.

* * *

A/N Another chapter down. As you might be able to guess, next time will see the start of the Chunin Exams. So I'm curious to know what you guys thought of my take on Fuinjutsu. And as always I'll be interested to hear what you though of the chapter at large. In another news Konohamaru finally got introduced. I honestly just didn't introduce him because I forgot about him at the start, but I saw this as a good opportunity to bring both Jiraiya and Konohamaru in at the same time. As for the results of the poll. Doing both Filler and the Movies wins, so I'm going to put up another poll, this one will last till the end of the Chunin Exams, asking what filler you all want me to cover.

CM 11/14/2018


	12. New Faces, Old Places

The village was buzzing with life. Vendors were peddling their wares with more excitement than ever. Security was tighter than ever with chunin and jonin ninja doing regular patrols, and of course Anbu watching from the shadows. There was an influx of visitors to the village. Yes, it was that time again, the Chunin Exams had returned to Konoha.

Gathered in the Hokage tower were all of the jonin-sensei's ready to report on whether they're entering their students into the exams. For the most part all of the older teams are being entered, finally he gets to the elite jonin that currently have students. "Gai?"

"I, Maito Gai, jonin-sensei of Team 3, now known simply as Team Gai, put forward Hyuuga Neji, Rock Lee, and Tenten." It wasn't surprising to most in the room, elite jonin almost always put their genin forward by the second year of teaching. Hiruzen turns towards Kurenai.

"Kurenai?"

"I, Yuuhi Kurenai, jonin-sensei of Team 7 put forward Hyuuga Hinata, Uchiha Sasuke, and Uzumaki Naruko." Murmurs erupt from the jonin in the room, this team had both the dead last and the handless heiress. The woman must be insane.

"Silence. Now then Kakashi?"

"I, Hatake Kakashi, jonin-sensei of Team 8 put forward Aburame Shino, Haruno Sakura, and Inuzuka Kiba." The murmurs erupt once more, now much louder. Two rookie teams had been put forward! With a look from the Hokage they quiet.

"Asuma?"

"I, Sarutobi Asuma, jonin-sensei of Team 10 put forward Akimichi Choji, Nara Shikamaru, and Yamanaka Ino." The room couldn't take it any more, this hadn't happened in years. All three rookie teams apprenticed under their elite jonin were put forward!

"I see, well I trust all of your judgment's. Keep in mind this is the first Chunin Exam in the past decade with all five major villages attending, be on alert." Iwa hadn't attended in years, and Kumo stopped coming after the Hyuuga Affair. The wind was changing and they all knew it. The jonin all quickly disperse, most of them leaving to gossip. Hiruzen didn't mention the fact that Ame had sent five teams this year. Previously they only had been sending one a year, but with them coming out of isolation it would seem they're interested in showing off their strength. Or getting their genin in contact with Uzumaki Naruko.

Kurenai finds herself outside with Kakashi, Gai, and Asuma. She speaks to the three of them.

"Any of you interested in betting on the exams?"

"And what would this bet entail Kurenai-chan?"

"Don't speak with such familiarity to me Sarutobi-san." Her voice was cold, she still hadn't forgiven him, despite his best efforts. She had resolved herself to never let his betrayal go. "But to answer the question I want to bet on our teams performances."

"Sounds interesting my most youthful teammate." Kakashi nods, he'd be down to make some easy money.

"Great, then I wager my entire team will make it to the third phase. And to go even further one of them will win it." Asuma scoffs.

"Talk about wasting money." The other three collectively glares at him and he coughs realizing his mistake. "I'll take that bet, I bet my team will make it just as far. Hell I bet yours will at most have the Uchiha make it." The dead last demon and handless heiress would never make it past the preliminaries.

"If this is the bet we're making than I think my team will make it, they're nothing if not efficient." And always on time, he had thoroughly drilled the importance of being on time to his team. Though the Inuzuka was resistant to the idea. Kakashi sighed, his team was a piece of work, but he had gotten through to them in the past five months. Though the Inuzuka was still brash, but that's just in his clans nature.

"Yosh! I'm sure my team will put their youth on display for all of the world! They will win it all!" Gai was willing to get in on this bet. His team was older and more experienced, though he knew not to underestimate Kurenai's team. He had seen them first hand, and knew they were strong.

"Great, minimum wager of 1000 ryo?"

"I'll raise it by 3000." Wow Kakashi was confident.

"Alright I'll put down 4000 on my team." The others murmured in agreement. With that the four dispersed to go track down their teams.

* * *

Naruko was currently holding hands with her girlfriend and staring down a square rock. The two had been on a date and had notice Konohamaru was following them. He had been doing this a lot in the past three weeks. The kid was funny and all, but it was getting annoying that he wouldn't stop. Not to mention Hina-chan was getting frustrated with him. She's pretty sure she was about to force the kid to stop. Naruko speaks, "Kono, I know it's you." The rock goes up in a puff of smoke and three kids pop out. Well that's surprising, she had only been expecting Konohamaru.

The two knew kids were aiding Konohamaru in some weird introduction. They named themselves off. The girl was named Moegi, she had her hair in a weird style of pigtails and had a permanent blush on her face. And the boy was named Udon, who wore glasses and had snot dripping down his nose. Naruko realized more and more people were giving her weird introductions recently. She hoped the trend stopped. "Naruko-chan will you play ninja with us?" The redhead shakes her head.

"Sorry Kono, I'm on a date. Maybe some other time." The boy pouts.

"Why do you like her anyways? She doesn't even have two hands!"

"Love is hard to explain, I hadn't even thought about my own feelings for her when she first asked me out. Honestly while I have definitely realized I'm attracted to girls in the past several months, I probably would have said yes to her regardless of her looks or gender. I just love her. I couldn't imagine anyone else I would want to spend the rest of my life with. So in the end her number of hands won't ever matter to me." Hinata blushed at that, she didn't say anything in response just squeezed her girlfriends hand. Her girlfriend really was very sweet.

Konohamaru didn't really get it but he shrugs. All he can tell is he has lots of work to do if he wants to win the redheads heart. He missed the sigh Moegi gave at his look. Hinata didn't. So the little girl had a crush huh? She could work with that. Anything to eliminate another rival. "I love you too Naru-chan." She leans in and gives her girlfriend a kiss. The kids watching collectively say gag and run off. The two are interrupted as not even thirty seconds later they hear Konohamaru cry out. They sigh, that sounded annoying. But they'd have to deal with it.

They quickly round the corner and find Konohamaru being lifted off the ground by some kunoichi. She was about Hinata's height, and had short hair. She also had black eyes, which kind of made her look like an Uchiha. But more than anything they noticed the foreign headband, more specifically Iwa, on her head. "Watch it you damn brat!"

"You should look where you're going you hag!" Naruko rolls her eyes, Kono really didn't know how to shut his mouth. She missed the irony. Hinata speaks up.

"You should let the boy go kunoichi-san." The kunoichi turns to look at them and scoffs upon seeing them.

"Yeah and why should I listen to a handless loser?" These kids looked weak, and she'd always take the chance to crush some tree huggers.

"Because he's the Hokage's Grandson." The kunoichi looks down at him and scoffs again.

"You really do raise them to be weak here in Konoha, when I was his age I was already able to take on genin."

"And who are you exactly?" Naruko was curious what could she say.

"Kamizuru Kurotsuchi." Hinata recognized the surname.

"So you're the Tsuchikage's granddaughter then?" The girl nods. "You should still let the boy go."

"And if I don't?"

"Then the boy wrapping the sand around you will probably use it. Oh and I'll probably be forced to cause an incident." Not to mention Naru-chan was standing stock still, she was already prepared to snap the girls neck. Naru-chan never liked people hurting her friends.

The girl looks down and curses jumping away and releasing the boy. She looks around and spots a redheaded boy standing on a tree branch. "And who are you supposed to be?"

The boy smiles charmingly, "I'm Sabaku no Gaara. But please call me Gaara." Kurotsuchi spots the Sand forehead protector and scowls.

"And why are you interfering?"

"I thought I'd make good on Suna's alliance with Konoha." The woman clicks her teeth.

"Whatever I'll just kill you all in the exams, assuming you're even strong enough to be participating." Naruko looks at the black eyed girl.

"I can kill you here and now if you prefer not to wait. Because you've already insulted my friends and my girlfriend. And attacked a Konoha civilian while on foreign soil. It'd be a shame too because you're pretty cute. Though not as cute as Hina-chan."

"At least you have good taste in women." If she found Kurotsuchi attractive she wasn't as stupid as she looks.

Hinata was less impressed. "Don't compliment women from outside Konoha, they're all skanks."

"Why's that?"

"They'll only ever want you for your body, and I heard most people in Iwa are inbred because they die too much in wars, they're forced to marry their siblings. You don't want to be apart of that." Naruko nods in understanding. Though wasn't that the case with most clans in general? Hitomi and Hiashi were both Hyuuga by blood and Sasuke's parents were both Uchiha. And her grandparents on her moms side are probably all Uzumaki. So aren't they all a little inbred? Man now that she thinks about it the whole marrying in the clan business is kind of weird.

The Iwa Kunoichi was red with anger. That was blatantly false! But before she can respond a new voice speaks. "Now there's no need to be rude, just because Iwa inbreeds more than the rest of us doesn't make it nice to mock them. Don't you think it's better for everyone to get along?" The group collectively looks at the new arrival. It was a fairly pretty girl wearing a kimono and a Kiri forehead protector. Though Naruko is having trouble telling if it's a boy or not. The chakra she was sensing felt male, but the person looked so feminine.

She figured she'd just ask. "Are you a boy or a girl?"

"I'm a boy." Gaara pipes up now.

"Damn and I was just thinking about how pretty you are." Oh well, there were other pretty foreigners he could meet. Like the two fine specimen from Konoha standing before him. "What about you two, you seem like you'd be fun to play with."

"Sorry not interested in boys."

"Fair enough, if you ever want to experiment give me a call."

"Aren't you a little young for this?"

"Appreciating the feminine form requires no age limit." The Kiri nin nods his head. "Not to mention in Suna we're encouraged to start dating early, we know we're ninja and our life spans are short." Not to mention the desert was ever unforgiving, and the need for the next generation was always important.

"Man Hina-chan foreign cultures are weird. So what's different in Kiri?"

"We have legal polygamy, both with taking multiple wives and husbands." It was to help propagate their many bloodlines. Though it was also a taboo to bring up marriage in front of the Mizukage.

"Weird, I could never imagine loving more than one person with all my heart." The Kiri nin shrugs, it's what they grew up with.

"I could say the same about not treating relations ships as only involving one person."

"I can certainly second that thought."

"How many new people are going to show up? We're only in an alleyway." Naruko didn't get it, is there something special about this alleyway. This time it was a blond woman with the biggest boobs Naruko had ever seen. She was wearing a Kumo forehead protector. Hinata couldn't help but tense up.

"So how is Kumo different big tits?" The woman seemed non-pulsed by the name. Hinata could feel herself relaxing at the way her girlfriend so casually addressed the woman.

"We have open relationships."

"How's that different from polygamy?"

"We have one significant other, most of the time, but we're allowed to see others freely while we date or are married, essentially there is no concept of cheating. Which by the way, you the handless Hyuuga and the redheaded girl are just my types. Going on a date with me would be pretty cool. Or we could do something a little cooler." She refused to call it hot just on principle.

"Sorry but the redheads all my mine, I won't be sharing her with anyone."

"A shame, I'm Samui by the way."

"And I'm Yuki Haku." It was the Kiri nin who spoke now.

"So you're all here for the exams?" The four foreign nin nod. Hinata smiles viciously. "Then I can't wait to show all of you just why Konoha is the strongest village." She had no pride in the village, but she was going to win anyways and teasing them is fun.

Gaara smiles, "I like the way you think, but a fair warning. I'm not good at sparing my enemies lives. So try not to die or get maimed. It'd be a shame to ruin your pretty faces."

"Whatever shorty, Iwa's going to show all of you up."

"Oh I didn't notice you. You're my type too Iwa kunoichi, you should definitely go on a date with me. It'd be cool. Not to mention I can show you how great Kumo is on the battle field and in the sack." Naruko couldn't help but wonder if all foreign nin are forward about their sexual desires. Fuu was like that too.

"You're forgetting the fact that Kumo has never beaten Kiri in a war before. If you really want to see good battle then you can watch me in the finals."

Konohamaru was looking at all of the genin weirdly, they had started ignoring him and he wasn't sure what was going on anymore. Though he whispered to Naruko. "What does she mean by in the sack?"

"It's about making babies."

"Isn't she a little young to want kids?" True but Naruko wasn't going to tell him it was actually just mindless sex.

"To each their own I guess. Now I think we should probably get going, you have friends to be playing with and I have a date. See you later foreign nins." Most of them wave goodbye, though Kurotsuchi just grunts.

The redhead and the Hyuuga leave them in the Alleyway and walk off. A few minutes later Naruko calls out. "So what do you think of them Sasuke?" She had sensed him watching the whole thing.

"I think the world is dead set on making me watch people flirt with you two, including yourselves. But they're all pretty strong as far as I can tell. By the way Kurenai wanted me to tell you to meet her at the training ground. It's probably for the chunin exams."

"Well let's just go get it out of the way, we can resume our date after Naru-chan." The redhead pouts but nods anyways.

* * *

The three found Kurenai waiting at training ground 14. She noticed them immediately and smiles. "Good you're all here. I'm not going to beat around the bush. I've entered you all into the the Chunin Exams. If you're interested in participating go to the first academy at 9am tomorrow." She was about to say something but seeing the looks on their faces she sighs. "You know I was gonna tell you it's your individual choices but seeing your expressions you'll all go anyways won't you?"

The three nod and Hinata speaks. "I guess now that you've entered us I should stop keeping this a secret."

"What secret is that?"

"If Hina-chan doesn't win the finals then she'll either be forced into the branch family or forced into an arranged marriage."

"Why haven't you told me this?"

"I know the exams are deadly and I didn't want you to force the other two to compete for my sake. I want to win but it's not worth getting them killed if you don't think we're ready. Clearly you do." Hinata could never forgive herself if her own desires got Naru-chan hurt. Hell even Sasuke, he was one of her closest friends.

"Alright I can understand that reasoning. Well here are your exams forms, bring these to the academy filled out. More information will be available upon officially entering." They nod and she continues. "Alright well, you three should relax, it is still your day off."

"Yeah Hina-chan and I have a date to get back to." The Hyuuga nods and takes Naruko's right hand in her left. "See you later Sasuke and Kurenai-sensei." With that the two walk off leaving the other two.

"Kurenai-sensei what do you think of them?"

"I think Hinata is too focused on protecting Naruko. Wave was a good wake up call for her, Naruko can protect herself. But outside of that I think they're great. You as well you know. When you came to this team I was expecting you to be a sexist prick, what with all the fan girls. But you've grown into a respectable young man in these past five months. So let me ask you the same question Sasuke. What do you think of them?"

"I love them, they're like the sisters I never had. They brought me out of my grief without making me feel like my memories of my family are a burden. They're both incredibly blunt with me and it's great after having been the object of peoples plans and desires for the past six years. Though Naruko could use some common sense."

"You know, I think if she did have common sense we'd all probably still be tip toeing around you."

"Perhaps you're right."

"You know I heard Hinata used to hate you."

"Yeah when we were six, I had a crush on Naruko and she knew it. She's been staking her claim for years."

"So why'd you stop crushing on her?"

"The massacre made me feel the need to cut out my connections."

"And you truly don't feel that way anymore?"

Sasuke had to think for a moment before shaking his head. "I couldn't imagine cutting my connection with the people I care for anymore." He hadn't realized how miserable he had been until he became friends with the other two.

"And what of your goals, have they changed?"

"No, I will still kill Itachi. But you and the others will be right there with me right?"

Kurenai smiles, "Of course, you're one of my precious students. My goal is to help you all fulfill yours. Though you're on your own when it comes restoring the clan." Sasuke splutters.

"Ew, Kurenai-sensei you may be hot but that's weird."

"Why must all my genin comment on my body."

"You just made a joke about my sex life, are you really one to talk?"

"I guess not."

Sasuke rolls his eyes, "I'll see you later Kurenai-sensei." He left smiling.

* * *

The three genin found themselves standing outside the academy at 8:30 am. The three nodded at one another and then headed inside. The academy to no surprise hadn't changed a bit in the past five months. They couldn't help but contrast just how much they had grown in the past five months since they graduated. They had all grown taller in the past few months, With Hinata standing now at 5'1", Naruko standing at 4'7" and Sasuke being the tallest of the three standing at 5'4." They hadn't really changed the way they dressed, still wearing the same garbs as before. Of course they had also grown as ninja, given that they were all chunin level now, if their being entered into the exam indicated anything.

They bring their filled out forms to a chunin at the front desk. He looks them over and then says. "Head up to room 301, don't wait until the last minute. There are only so many seats, and extra genin will be turned away." The three genin nod and quickly head up the stairs. They had always had class on the first floor and only really thought about it now, but why does this stairwell only go to the second floor? It seemed odd. They shrug and walk down the corridor, as they do they notice an odd commotion going on outside of room 201. Well, it said 301 but they weren't stupid enough to forget they've only climbed one set of stairs. Plus Kurenai-sensei would never settle for them being unable to dispel one of the simplest Genjutsu.

Oddly they notice Lee seems to be having trouble entering the room. It's weirder to them that he's even trying. He's not that stupid and Neji certainly would recognize the Genjutsu with the Byakugan. The team decides it must be an act and quietly decides to ignore the older team. They don't want to waste their time by dealing with this. They could have sworn they heard Lee talking about Sakura as they pass but they shake it off as pre-exam jitters. How would Lee even know Sakura?

They arrive at the exam room on the third floor and find Kurenai-sensei standing outside waiting on them. They look at her quizzically. "Good luck you three, remember what you've learned under me and you'll do fine." They nod and she steps aside to let them in.

Entering the room they notice the killing intent radiating out from the other genin in the room. They are largely unfazed, having experienced worse in their childhoods. And in the case of Hinata and Sasuke, they had also felt worse from their very own teammate. The second thing they notice is the shrill cry of one Yamanaka Ino as she glomps the Uchiha heir. "Sasuke-kun! Did you miss your Ino-chan?"

Naruko sees an opportunity and whispers to Hina-chan. "Do you wanna mess with Ino and Sasuke at the same time?" Hinata looks at her and nods, it sounds like fun. "Good, then follow my lead." They turn their attention back Sasuke who had just managed to break free of Ino's grasp. Naruko quickly rushes forward and latches onto Sasuke's arm. Hinata catching on quickly does the same for his other arm. "Sasuke-kun, are we not enough to satisfy you?" He looks at her dumbfounded. He had never heard her call him "kun" before or use a tone like that. It was weird and he didn't like it. Not to mention the implication.

Hinata pipes up before he can respond. "Yeah Sasuke-kun, after everything we did last night are we really not enough?" Sasuke curses in his head, these two were stirring trouble just to watch him squirm. Two shrill screams erupt, one from Ino and the other from Sakura who just arrived. Sasuke decided he was wrong about his teammates. He hates them.

"Looks like Sasuke taught them how great cock is."

"Of course you would know just how great it is to take some cock Kiba." He may hate his teammates at the moment, but he wasn't just going to let dog boy insult them.

"What was that you bastard?"

"Aren't dogs supposed to have good hearing along with their noses? I guess the runts are typically just to trashy to inherit that trait. I'm surprised your sister didn't set you straight." By this point Naruko and Hinata had let him go, seeing as he wasn't reacting to them anymore. Oh well, hearing him insult Kiba was equally fun.

"My sister is too busy fucking the snake woman to care." That's not true, she and his mother had beat his ass for his treatment of the two girls. But he didn't regret it, he just regretted being caught.

"You realize that snake woman is going to kick you're ass for insulting her girlfriend right?" Team 7 had met Anko a few more times over the course of their careers and if they learned anything, it would be that Anko was crazy the vast majority of the time.

"You guys are already bickering, this is such a drag."

"Shikamaru you haven't changed at all. If anything I think you got lazier." Hinata shoots back.

"And you three have changed a lot." He had noticed immediately that Hinata was lacking a hand, and that Sasuke was far more talkative than their academy days. Naruko seemed to have some indescribable change about her, he couldn't put his finger on it. "How'd you lose the hand?"

The rest of the rookie nine turn to Hinata and see that indeed she is missing a hand. Gasps ring out from Ino, Sakura, and Choji. Shino was ever stoic and Kiba scoffed. "Probably lost it because she's a worthless ninja."

"If protecting my girlfriend makes me worthless then yes I suppose I am. After all what genin team would get injured fighting two A-rank nins and an S-rank nin." It was a bit of hyperbole, they hadn't actually fought Fuu, and hadn't fought Konan at the same time as Utakata. But it wasn't technically a lie.

"Yeah right, as if. You'd be dead if you actually went up against an S-rank." They would have if Konan had been trying to kill them, but she wasn't.

"You all should quiet down, you're drawing attention to yourselves." A gray haired boy with glasses says, interrupting them. As if to prove his point the rest of the room glares at them. "This must be your first exam or you would know better."

"Is this your second?" Sakura asks curiously.

"No, actually this is my seventh."

Kiba scoffs, "So this guy is just a loser who can't pass."

"Or these exams are more difficult than we were expecting." Still Shikamaru couldn't help but feel seven attempts is a little excessive.

"Fortunately with all of my failures I've managed to gather information of pretty much every one here."

"Really do you have anything on Yuki Haku?"

"You know his name, that's so boring." He goes through his cards and quickly finds the one on Haku. "Says here he's from Kiri and is a student under one of the seven swordsmen of the mist, Momochi Zabuza. He is also a member of the Yuki clan and has Hyoton. Anyone else you'd like to know about?"

Shikamaru speaks at this point. "Uzumaki Naruko." Team 7 looks at him surprised. "What? You're still competition." They shrug, fair enough.

"Uzumaki Naruko, says here she's proficient in Genjutsu and Fuinjutsu. She has two unknown techniques that allow her to change her hair, she powers up considerably when using them. She has directly fought an S-rank nin on her first C-rank mission which turned A-rank. She killed the A-rank missing nin Utakata." Team 7 immediately goes on edge. They knew the Hokage had kept her use of the Juubi's chakra under wraps. The number of people who should know about it can be counted on two hands. Likewise her use of sage mode shouldn't really be known to people. This is no ordinary genin. He also shared information specifically to make her seem like a powerful target. No they cannot trust him. Not to mention the fact that Team 7 hadn't been in a Chunin Exam before so he couldn't have gotten info on them by meeting them in another exam.

Shikamaru speaks again, "I didn't ever catch your name."

"My apologies, I'm Yakushi Kabuto." Sasuke recognized the surname, Yakushi was the name of the second in charge of the hospital, right after Noihara Rin. So then this Kabuto character was likely a medic of some kind. Though that's assuming he follows in his fathers footsteps. "I don't know if you realize but these exams are pretty historic, it's the first time in years that all five major villages are participating in the same exams. Not only that but Ame has finally come out of it's isolation and is sending more than one team to the exams. And there is a new village participating, though since they're so new they're pretty weak." Team 7 couldn't help but wonder if they would meet Konan again, since Ame was here. Would Fuu have officially joined as a ninja? Guess they'd have to wait and find out.

There attention is drawn to the ninja rushing toward Kabuto, with a forehead protector they didn't recognize. Guess that's the new village. They watch passively as the genin misses Kabuto, only for the gray haired boy to puke his guts out. Well that's an interesting technique, it's worth looking into how to avoid it. The genin who struck forward was wearing a gauntlet that they assumed caused it. He said something about Otogakure being strong or something like that, but Naruko was more interested in how his technique worked.

She distracted from her current train of thought as a man bursts into the room with a puff of smoke. "Silence! Degenerates!" The man wore a black trench coat and was covered in scars. "I'm the proctor for the first exam, Morino Ibiki." Hinata recognized the name, Anko-san had mentioned him when talking about her work before. "Any fighting will not be tolerated, failure to comply will be met with instant disqualification. Now come up and take the number cards I have down here. Then go to the matching seat."

One by one the genin head down and take their cards. Naruko got number 27, and looking at her girlfriend she sees that she got 26. That's pretty lucky. It seems Sasuke is further in the back, with a 63. They quietly take their seats and await further orders. "Good, the first exam is a written test. It has a total of ten questions, each is worth one point." That's pretty simple. "Your points will be scored as a team, any team with less than 21 points fails." So in other words everyone on a team has to get at least one point. "The tenth question will be delivered separately. Finally cheating is prohibitted, everytime you're caught cheating you lose a point. Get caught five times and your whole team is disqualified."

Naruko couldn't help but notice how odd that seemed. In the academy the rules were that they would instantly get a zero if they're caught cheating. And she doubts the message the proctor is trying to send is that things become more forgiving as time goes on. She's cut from her musings as the tests are passed out. She quickly flips it over and sees a whole lot of random shit. Why does she need to find the derivative of the velocity of a kunai traveling in an arc of 30 degrees to the ground. Looking over the other questions she notices it's all mostly just worthless math or literature from higher level civilian courses. Though interestingly she does notice a problem of Fuinjutsu that she quickly answers.

Looking to her left she spots her girlfriend with her Byakugan active and a mostly filled sheet. Ah, so the whole point is to cheat then. Subtly glancing back at Sasuke she sees he's cheating too, his Sharingan was blazing. Then they're fine. She's answered one of the questions already, and the other two will get perfect scores so it should be fine. Though maybe she can do another way. Looking for someone who seems mostly done she subtly weaves a Genjutsu around them. The boy suddenly stands up and shouts out the answers to his first three questions. Naruko quickly copies them down. All she had done was show him a Genjutsu of Ibiki telling him to call out his answers, he had done the rest for them.

Ibiki was swift and ruthless "Number 19 and his teammates number 87 and 102, you three are all disqualified." Ibiki was looking right at Naruko as he said that, and she instantly knew he was aware of her trick. He seems to be letting it slide for now, but likely wouldn't let her get away with it in the future. That's fine she got all she needs.

As the exam goes on Ibiki calls out more and more numbers, by the time the timer rings roughly a third of the room was empty now. "Alright it's time for the tenth question. But there are some extra rules for this one. You may choose not to take the question and be instantly disqualified." A girl from Suna with a large fan calls out.

"Then why wouldn't we?"

He glares at her and continues, "As I was saying, you may choose not to take the question and fail; however, if you choose to take the question and get it wrong you and your teammates will be barred from ever entering another Chunin Exam." Outrage erupts from the room.

Kiba shouts out, "Bullshit! There are people here who have failed multiple times."

"Shut up maggots! These are my exams and my rules, it's your shitty luck that had you try and become a chunin under my watch. Now then if you don't want to take the exam simply raise your hand so I can mark it down." A minute passes by in tense silence before a genin raises his hand. "Number 35 and his teammates 48 and 56 you are disqualified." The group leaves silently and the tidal wave of others leaving starts. People start raising their hands left and right, it doesn't take long for the group to be halved. Naruko and her teammates never would have quit anyways, Hina-chan has to much riding on this exam.

Hinata is watching the room carefully, she had noticed during the test that there were chunin planted in as genin. The one she had been copying off of had been the first to raise his hand. All of the first people to leave were the chunin she realized, but they had set the standard for the unsure genin. She notices out of the corner of her eye that it seems a cloud genin was about to raise his hand, he was muttering something fierce about how his staying in the exams would lead to nine great monsters being created and then collected together somehow creating the Fourth Shinobi War. That seemed a little outlandish to her.

It seemed he wasn't the only one to notice as Samui speaks up. "Ugh, Omoi continuing to raise your hand would so not be cool." And that was it, just like that the tension in the room broke and people stopped leaving. Hinata didn't think for a second that the blonde actually wanted to help the room but it was necessary to stay in the exam. The boy nods his head and lowers his hand.

Ibiki eyes the room for a little bit longer before saying, "Is there anyone else who'd like to quit now? You won't get another opportunity." He's met with silence. "Then you all pass." Like before outrage erupts from the genin in the room.

"So there was no question?" Naruko was curious.

"No I just asked it without telling you. The question was 'will you proceed knowing it could be dangerous or will you turn your backs on your village and your comrades?'" Ah, when he puts it like that then yeah he asked the question implicitly.

A boy from Suna in a weird catsuit speak, "So then what was the point of the first test?"

"It was to test your information gathering skills. The ability to get good information without being caught will be crucial in your careers as ninja." He removes his bandanna style forehead protector and reveals his scarred head. "This is what happens when you get bad information." He looked like he wanted to say something more but a cannon ball comes crashing through the window.

It turns out to be a container of some kind as Anko pops out. Behind her is a banner that says "Proctor of the second exam, the sexy and taken, Mitarashi Anko!" Ibiki sighs and says.

"You're too early Anko." She ignores him as she counts up the number of teams.

"Wow, you must be going dull Ibiki, you passed 20 teams. Ah well I'll be sure to cut that in half. Alright you brats, follow me to training ground 44, don't be late!" And with that she jumps out the window.

"She didn't tell us how much time we have to get there!" Ibiki smirks and says.

"Then you better get going." Team 7 quickly leaves the room, they had never been to training ground 44 before but they knew it's rough location. Though Naruko had to admit, she feels like she should recognize the name.

They're the first group to arrive and find Anko just standing around outside of the gated forest. "Hey Anko."

"Well if it isn't Nai-chan's brats. Try not to get eaten by the deadly animals inside, it'd be a shame, I do like you three." Relief instantly floods the team. Hinata asks curiously.

"Are deadly animals the only thing we have to worry about?"

"Well there are also man-eating plants and the other genin." Oh this is great then, plants seem to like Naruko for some reason and animals are afraid of her because of the Juubi, so the only threat in the forest will be other genin. Naruko had a contemplative look on her face. The other genin quickly arrive and Anko speaks. "Welcome to training ground 44, or as I like to call it, The Forest of Death."

Kiba scoffs, "It doesn't look so tough." A kunai whizzes by him, leaving a cut across his cheek.

"You know Kiba, Hana-chan would be pretty sad if you died in there. Well maybe only a little. But for her sake try not to get killed, it's brats like you who die first." She spins as someone comes up behind her. It was a genin from Kusa, she had her kunai and was handing it back to her. "You should be careful, coming up behind me is normally a death sentence." Unless it was Hana-chan, but that's different.

"Sorry, I just got so excited by the sight of blood." The Kusa genin backs away.

"Right well before we begin I'm going to need all of you to sign these waivers." She says holding out a stack of papers. "Don't worry these are just to make sure that from this point on in the exams Konoha can't be held liable for your inevitable deaths. Those of you from Konoha don't need to bother, you already signed the waivers by being our ninja." That was roughly a third of the teams who didn't need to sign anything. So she quickly hands them out to the foreign genin. Once all of the waivers are submitted she continues. "Each team will be receiving one of two scrolls. Your objective is to get the other scroll and make it to the tower in the center of the training grounds. Don't open the scrolls."

"What happens if we do?"

"Not only will you be disqualified but you'll also get a nice little surprise. Each team will be starting at a separate gate, It'll be your job to track down another team for your scroll. If you make it to the tower and any of your teammates are dead or missing then you fail. Killing is permitted."

Suddenly Naruko smacks her hand into her palm and says to her white eyed girlfriend. "I realize why I recognize this place now. I slept here a few times after getting kicked out of the orphanage. I was always so disappointed that the giant tigers wouldn't let me cuddle them. Or eat them." Most of the genin are looking at her like she's grown a second head. "The plants with teeth were pretty cool though, they always gave me shelter when it rained."

Hinata sighs, she remembered now, this was training ground "four four" that Naruko mentioned when they were four years old. By the time she could count to forty-four she had stopped caring about it. "Naru-chan try not to paint a bigger target on us."

"Why should I? Most of the people here are two weak to be a threat anyways. Not to mention I'm feeling, I don't know this weird longing for my childhood." Which was odd given how terrible her childhood was when she had to stay here. Hina-chan was the only good aspect of her childhood.

"Nostalgia is the word you're looking for."

"Ah right, I just didn't know that was the feeling it described." Naruko was plenty smart, but she has trouble with most words concerning emotions. Ah well, that's part of the reason she loved Hina-chan. She always helped her learn more about what she was feeling. She gives her girlfriend a quick peck on the cheek.

Sasuke sighs, why must they do this. He notices the glares the team is receiving for their casual attitude. Whatever they were weaklings anyways.

"Right well, Naruko's odd childhood aside. You all need to go into the tent and get your scroll, one at a time." They quickly do as ordered and once again are standing around outside the forest. "Alright then, we'll be moving you to your gates now." Several chunin appear and escort the various teams to different gates. Team 7 is left with Anko at the first gate. "You three will be given some time to plan, I'd suggest using it."

"Way ahead of you, Hinata did you see who has the earth scrolls?" She had activated her Byakugan as soon as she entered the tent. She nods and quickly describes the teams who have them. "Good Naruko, enter Sage Mode and find out which of those groups is the weakest." She would be able to tell their relative strength based off the way their chakra feels. It's not absolute, for example Rock Lee feels weak according to his chakra but is incredibly powerful. The good news is that suppressing chakra won't help the enemy teams hide from this.

She does so quickly and says. "Do we want to target Konoha teams? Because Team 8 is an option. If not then then one of the team from Suna works, one of the ones that don't have Gaara."

"No, we shouldn't fight Konoha teams if we don't have to."

"We should avoid Kusa at all costs."

"Why's that Naru-chan?"

"I hadn't felt it before now, but the woman from Kusa is way to strong to be a genin, easily as strong as Jiraiya. Not to mention she gives off the same feeling as Anko's curse mark." Anko goes on alert hearing that, she had been eavesdropping on the brats.

"Can you tell if she's marked, or is she the source?"

"I can't tell, we're too far away, and I don't want to get close." The other two nod at that. They would avoid Kusa then. "Oh Fuu is here too. Looks like she's being put in as a genin." So she's a wringer then, because she was at least jonin level in strength.

"If she goes near you I'm gonna kill her."

"Calm down Hina-chan, you know I love only you. Though you know you're pretty hot when you're jealous, or when you're angry or all the time really, but especially when you're angry."

"Are you two seriously flirting when we might be walking into our deaths?"

"Well what if we do die? Then we'll have missed our last chance to flirt." He sighs, he hates them but he loves them.

"You two are the worst."

"Naw, we could be like Anko and Hana, remember the time Hana started groping Anko right there at dinner?"

"Don't remind me." As a straight teenage boy, that had been hard to watch and maintain his cool. What could he say, they were both attractive. "And don't ever do that in front of me or else."

"Or else what?"

"I don't know I'll abandon the village for some guy whose into young boys or something."

"That seems worse for you then anyone else."

"Fair point."

"Hey Sasuke?"

"Yeah?"

"You know how Kurenai-sensei taught you the **Shōsen** **Jutsu** (Mystical Palm Technique) in wave?"

"Where are you going with this Hinata?"

"Do you ever wonder why she didn't use it to heal your hand?" The three go silent as Sasuke stands there with a look of shocked betrayal.

"Wow Kurenai-sensei is a sadist huh."

"That's it, Kurenai-sensei is officially on my hit list, right there at number one."

"Wow she replaced Itachi?"

"She stabbed me for fun, not even to test herself. She must be evil incarnate."

"I'm telling Nai-chan you said that." The three genin turn to Anko, they had forgotten she was there.

Sasuke begs, "Please don't Anko-sama, I don't want to be stabbed again."

"Hey Hina-chan now that I think about it aren't I due for a hand wound? Cause Sasuke already got stabbed through the hand and you lost yours."

"Don't Jinx it Naru-chan, I was hoping if we don't talk about it then it won't happen."

Anko couldn't help but laugh, these kids were great.

"Alright kids, it's time for the exam to start." She grabs a mic and the speakers along the fence ring out as she speaks. "Alright the exams begins on three. . . Three." The gates swing open and twenty genin teams rush in. Anko immediately sets out to go find the nearest Anbu, if Orochimaru is here, or connected to the team from Kusa then they need to be on high alert.

* * *

A/N Well the chapter came a little late, but I'm pretty happy with it. It would have come yesterday but I had to work on a paper for school that I've been putting off. Anyways, I can't wait to hear what you all think of the chapter. Oh an by the way the poll is actually up now, I forgot to make it appear on my profile page when I made it, but it's there now. There will likely be another delay on the next chapter since I have another paper I have a final paper due Monday that I need to work on. Speaking of finals I'm going to go ahead and say that when finals come around I will be putting this story on a temporary Hiatus to focus on studying. But that's not for another few weeks. Again it's just for school and not because I'm bored or experiencing writers block. Well that tangent aside I'll be curious as always to see what you guys think? What do you think of the change to Gaara? I figure he would have to be different if he never had Shukaku.

Oh one more thing, I'm considering rewriting the first chapter (I probably will) but I want to know do you all think I should focus on doing that before writing the next chapter or save it for a later date?

CM 11/17/2018


	13. The Snake in the Garden

Naruko was jumping from tree branch to tree branch. Her teammates were just behind her as she guided them quietly through the trees towards the Suna team they had decided to take out. They weren't terribly far so it wouldn't take long. Behind her the other two had their doujutsu active. Naruko would notice any threat long before them with her much wider range of senses but it didn't hurt to have the second and third set of eyes watching. Naruko was being sure to guide them away from any other teams that might head their way. While all three of them wouldn't mind fighting skilled opponents they have to much riding on this to let something like pride stop them from advancing.

The fowl chakra was still prowling the forest and she noticed it seemed to be looking for something. She couldn't tell what, but it was searching. It seemed to be heading in the general direction they had come from.

"Naruko how much longer?"

"Two minutes until we arrive, they should come into view of Hina-chan in thirty seconds." Sasuke nods, the Hyuuga would be able to tell them of any traps in advance, Naruko could only detect intent and chakra. They had all released their resistance seals as soon as they entered the forest. If they could be fighting to the death then they would need all the power they could get and holding back could get them killed.

It didn't take long for Naruko to be proven right as Hinata speaks up, "They've set up an ambush facing the north and east." It made sense, they were in the south west part of the forest and most other teams would be coming from those directions. "I'll take point and guide us to the weak spot in their defense." Naruko quickly falls back as Hinata moves forward. She guides them around the traps set up around the team from Suna.

They arrive above the team, quietly looking down at them as the Suna nin go about setting up their Ambush. Judging by their appearance the team was a few years older than Team 7. They didn't know the exact setup in Suna but if it's anything like Konoha then these kids likely are from one of the smaller academies or weren't trained by an elite jonin. Of course this weakness is why Naruko recommended them as targets. Though none of them would underestimate their unaware opponents they had no interest in dying because they did.

The team from Suna had two boys and a girl, a fairly standard team composition. Most teams in the elemental nations were arranged to have more boys then girls, in large part due to the lack of kunoichi in the ninja program. The girl was directing the two boys as they went about making their traps. Naruko crept along the canopy until she was above the girl. Hinata and Sasuke both went to the two boys. With a single hand sign from the redhead the group dropped down silently behind their targets. The girl noticed Hinata and Sasuke but couldn't speak as a hand covers her mouth. She finds herself growing tired. She died peacefully, drained of all the chakra in her body.

Naruko had a metric now, a civilian would die instantly from her absorbing their chakra but a genin would take longer, around five seconds. She looked down at the dead Suna genin, she felt a small bit of remorse for the girl. She had done nothing to earn her death but enter the same exams as her team. She could have used another technique, but she saw an opportunity and she took it. If nothing else at least her death was painless and swift. Looking at her teammates she sees the boys are both dead. One had his temple caved in from a powerful kick and the other had his neck slit open. They nod and Hinata takes the scroll they came here for. They had obtained it in under half an hour, now they just had to run straight for the tower.

The redhead wasn't sure when but her Sage Mode had run out at some point while they observed the Suna team. She would need to spend a few seconds reactivating it. She closed her eyes and stood still.

"Alright we have both scrolls now, once Naru-chan is back in Sage Mode we can head straight to the tower." Hinata still had her Byakugan active unlike her girlfriends use of Nature Chakra the Byakugan didn't wear off after a certain time, she could keep it going for as long as she has chakra. It drains her so little that she could keep it up for the next three days without stopping.

"Should we put their bodies in storage scrolls so they can be properly buried?"

"No there are Anbu scattered around, they will find the bodies soon enough." She says looking to her male teammate. Looking at her girlfriend she sees that her hair is standing once more. Purple eyes snap open to look at her team.

"We need to move. Now!" She didn't wait to see if her team was following, she knew they would be.

"Naru-chan what's going on?"

"The Kusa genin, her fowl chakra is heading straight for us." It was heading for the site of their battle, if it could even be called that. So she didn't know their exact location. Hopefully if they moved fast enough they could avoid the woman. "She's moving fast, be ready." The chakra was moving much faster than even Naruko's top speed when not in Sage Mode. She of course wasn't going as fast as she could be right now, even if she wasn't in Sage Mode, she's just that much faster than her teammates.

"He just entered my vision."

"I thought it was a she?"

"He's disguising himself, his real face is hidden under a dead persons skin." She could see the dead chakra coils and the active ones hidden underneath. The other two grimace at that. This person had killed a genin just to infiltrate the exams, and seemed to be targeting them. They didn't have time to ponder this further as Hinata calls out, "He's here, Jutsu on our six!" Naruko spins and holds out her hands and focuses on absorbing the chakra from the Jutsu. She can't see it but she can see all the branches breaking as a strong gust of wind shreds through them. The Jutsu gets absorbed into Naruko's hands before ever managing to reach the rest of the team. She ignores the branches that whip her skin and leave a few shallow cuts.

The team had stopped after that. They couldn't outrun this guy and leaving their backs open would be foolish. They had to stay until help arrived, or until he left.

"Kukuku, that's interesting ability you have there." The voice was feminine but they knew it was a trick. Standing on a tree branch above them and ten yards back was the Kusa genin. "To completely negate my Jutsu takes quite the skill." He licked his lips in delight as he stared down the group. He was radiating an intense killing intent. Much to his surprise the genin were unfazed by it.

Never had Hinata and Sasuke been more thankful for the fact that Naruko's rampage let out more killing intent then this guy could ever possibly make, they likely would be paralyzed now otherwise. For Naruko's part she simply ignored it. She had felt killing intent all her life but it had never fazed her, she always figured she just had some natural immunity.

"Oh my. You three aren't fazed by my killing intent? My creation must have done a better job then I thought." Yes his creation had been his crowning achievement, not even his work towards immortality could change that. Though looking down at the group below he couldn't help but think that might change, hell his second greatest creation was right there. Yes this team could change that.

"What are you talking about?"

"You'll learn in time, Naruko-chan." So he knew who she was, though given he was targeting them he likely knew who they all were. "So then, do you three have what it takes to sate a predator?" Before they could respond or question him he flew through hand seals and a large snake came flying out of the smoke. It tried to swallow Hinata but Naruko appeared next to it and kicked it away. It took one look at her, and hissed.

"I refusssse to fight that thing. The sssnakesss will not help you here." Guess that's an advantage of animals being terrified of her. Summons won't fight her out of an instinctual fear. The snake disappeared in a puff of smoke leaving the man and the genin.

"So are you going to show your real face Orochimaru?" It was Hinata who spoke, having put the pieces together on who their assailant was.

"You're quite the smart one Hinata-chan. I suppose it wouldn't hurt." The man started to peel off the dead skin on his face revealing his true form. He was a pale man with yellow eyes and snake like pupils. Naruko noted he had an odd beauty to him, his features seemed to hold both a deep amusement and a deep melancholy. As though he was a man who never stopped mourning for others yet found the notion of death entertaining. She knew he was the Snake Sannin who had betrayed the village a few months before her birth. But he seemed familiar, like there was something about him she should recognize. Maybe it was his attitude, in a way it reminded her of Kaguya. But that made no sense, it could be he simply didn't care for humans in the same way the woman had, but it felt like something more than that, he seemed to have some physical traits she feels she should recognize. "Now then, let's see if you three can survive." The man lunged forward and easily embedded a fist in Naruko's stomach. She was blasted back into the forest as he turned toward the other two. "I suppose only Sasuke-kun could see me move. You'll need to be faster if you want to keep up with those eyes of yours."

That snapped the other two out of their stupor as Sasuke quickly flew through hand seals and sent a ball of fire at the Snake nin. He dodged easily enough, it's not like he would be threatened by the Jutsu even in his sleep. He was however forced to step back to avoid the kick to his ribs from the handless Hyuuga. He ducks down quickly as a kick flies through where his head would have been. He didn't have to look to be able to tell it was Naruko. "You two alright?"

"Yeah." He hadn't really tried anything after punching Naruko away. He hadn't noticed it before but looking at her now he can feel it. She's in Sage Mode. He never bothered to try and master it like his teammate but he still knew how to sense nature chakra. He couldn't help but lick his lips, these kids really did get better with every second.

The two girls pressed the attack on him. He had to admit, they worked well together. Though the boy seemed to just be standing there shocked. This was proven false when he feels a sharp pain go through his spine. The boy dissolves and he realizes he had been in a genjutsu. He hadn't thought to check since the boy hadn't had his Sharingan active, and he didn't feel anything wrong. It would seem the boy was better than he let on. With a glance back he sees his spine has been severed by the chakra scalpel. Looking closer now he can see there was a **Henge no Jutsu** (Transformation Technique) over the boys eyes. He shuts his eyes and smiles, yes they were amazing, but they have much to learn.

The three observed as the the nin closed his eyes and seemed to peacefully die. They say no words as they quickly flee. Hinata knew the man was still alive but with his spine severed there would be no recovering. She was proven wrong as she sees him coughing out a new and undamaged version of his body. "He's not dead! He's completely healed!" The other two curse and once more they turn to face him. They got lucky he had underestimated them and now that advantage would be gone.

"Kukuku you three are perfect, I couldn't have found a more perfect group." Naruko looks at him and asks.

"What do you want with us?"

"More than you'll ever know." That unsettled her two teammates, it would seem the man was getting to them. Naruko still felt no fear, she was realizing she likely wasn't capable of it. She did have to hold back a wince as the two behind her push through their fear and get to work, plucking one of her hairs in the process.

"Don't suppose you'll let us go." The man shakes his head, an amused smile on his face as he watches them. "Didn't think so. Are you an associate of Konan?" She couldn't think of any other reason an S-rank nin would be after them.

"Figures you know her, but no I'm not here for the Akatsuki." So then there were good odds he intended to kill them. If he had been with Konan then this was likely some kind of test. "Are you done buying time for your little friends yet?" He had notice the two seemed to be hiding behind her, if he had to guess setting up some Jutsu. His spies had mentioned Jiraiya had started training them so perhaps some kind of seal.

"No comment. If we give you our scrolls will you let us go?" She had no intention of doing so, but he was letting them stall for time so she was going to use it.

"Not a bad idea. Offering a predator a greater meal in hopes it won't devour you. But these scrolls mean nothing to me." Well there goes that plan.

"Naru-chan now!" Naruko leaps back immediately and at the same time Sasuke and Hina-chan channel chakra into the seal they had made on the tree. Nothing seems to change immediately but they nod and start running again.

Orochimaru gives chase only to note that as he enters the seal his chakra gets sealed off. He sees the seal they made and smiles. It was a hybrid seal between a barrier and a curse seal. Everyone who doesn't have the DNA of those three will get their chakra sealed when passing through the seal. He could undo it, but it would take him a few precious minutes. He was impressed none the less. These kids will go far in the future. It's a shame they're stuck here in Konoha, their talent will be squandered for as long as Sarutobi-sensei was in charge. Though he'd be fixing that soon enough.

* * *

Team 7 couldn't believe that worked. Of course he had let them do it, and they would need another five minutes to run to the tower. But they had bought themselves sometime. Naruko speaks to her teammates. "Next time he appears I want you two to continue to the tower without me."

"No, we're not leaving you Naru-chan."

"Hina-chan, I'm not asking you to abandon me, I'm asking you to go get help and ensure I can use my kekkei genkai to it's fullest." She had been practicing draining everything in a radius around her, but she couldn't do it with her teammates there. It would most likely kill them if she did. "Not only that but there are good odds he's after one of us, and if you leave me behind and he's after either of you, then I can catch up the fastest."

"Then you should be the one to go to the tower, you can get their far faster than either of us." Naruko with Sage Mode active could far outpace either of them and could make it much faster.

"I don't think we should split up, we're at our strongest when we work together." Sasuke had to admit, if he had said that several months ago he would have received looks like he grew a second head.

"You're right Sasuke, I shouldn't have brought it up. But if I think I need to use this technique you two better get the hell away." They nod at that, they would be willing to flee if only not to inhibit the Jutsu, but that would only be temporary. "Do you think we should find another team from Konoha for help?"

"Most other genin wouldn't be able to match us, let alone a Sannin. Not to mention of there's only one team we could trust to help us." Team Gai wouldn't work because Neji hates them. Likewise Team 8 wouldn't work because no one on that team likes them (well Sakura likes Sasuke but that's it) and Kabuto was not to be trusted. That only left Team 10 and they wouldn't be much help against a Sannin.

"Hinata's right, we can't drag any of the other genin into this. They might not work against us, but they could hurt us just by being to weak." The foreign teams were out of the question, so they were all alone. The team was only two minutes away from the tower at this point when Hinata spotted Orochimaru once more. He had his coils active so he had definitely disabled their seal. Still they were closer to the tower now, so perhaps the proctors would notice.

"Naru-chan do you think you can use the Juubi's chakra? It would be enough to alert people of the problem." Of course the whole village would feel it, and things would get worse for her girlfriend again, but they would at least be alive.

"I don't know, I've never called it at will before. And putting you in danger is not something I'm willing to do to activate it." The other two nod, if she had to see Hinata get hurt by the Sannin then the white eyed girl would likely die.

"Can you ask Kaguya?"

"It would likely take too long, it takes me longer than entering Sage Mode to meet with her, and that's assuming she's in control."

"What do you mean?"

"I've realized that depending on the proportions of her chakra she's sometimes the Juubi and other times herself. If she's not in control then she can't help me." And that's assuming she wants to help. The woman was a mystery. She said she wants her dead yet the white haired woman also goes out of her way to be nice to her and help her when she's struggling.

"So unless you're desperate to save Hinata this won't work then?" Naruko nods, and the other two sigh. Sage Mode was still great, but the power of the Juubi could crush all underfoot. They didn't have anymore time to discuss as Orochimaru caught up to them. He was laughing again and they couldn't help but shutter. It was just so creepy.

"That was an excellent use of Fuinjutsu, I'm almost disappointed I haven't gotten to see the Uzumaki use it." Of course the main reason Naruko hasn't used any Fuinjutsu is because Jiraiya chose to focus on teaching her how to counter curse seals since he wants her to remove Anko's seal. He knew what it does thanks to her but he still can't figure out the specifics like she can, so teaching her how to do basic counter seals would go a long way in her coming up with the solution.

"Sorry to disappoint, but I was the dead last for a reason." Who knows maybe leaking that will make him underestimate her. Not likely given he's seen what she can do, but maybe there's a chance.

"Oh I'm quite aware of Mizuki's sabotage." The man had been one of his spies, of course he knew he was trying to stop the Kushina look alike from graduating. A pointless task, all that would have done is allow the Akatsuki to have her easier. He watches in amusement as the redhead clicks her teeth in annoyance.

"How long have you been spying on her?" Hinata was not amused. This was the second S-rank nin who seemed to be spying on her girlfriend and she was not happy to hear it.

"I've known about her since the moment Kushina found out she was pregnant." He had still been in the village at the time. He had to admit, he had been happy to find that out. He was so fond of the couple. It was a shame the Sandaime decided to cut his losses and reveal Orochimaru's experiments to Minato. Of course the old bastard only did so because he wanted a spy outside the village, he failed to think about how betraying the snake would make him turn on the village for real. Ah well it was for the best, he had been able to experiment in earnest because of it. It was just unfortunate to not be able to be there for Minato and Kushina.

"So then you knew my parents?"

"Oh yes, I was quite close with both of them. Hell Minato might have named me your Godfather had Sarutobi-sensei not banished me." That was news to all three of the genin. Did Naruko seriously have a connection with all of the Sannin?

"Naruko your family gets crazier and crazier."

"Are you really one to talk Sasuke?"

"Low blow."

"Enough you two, in case you've forgotten an S-rank missing nin is still standing in front of us."

The two blush and turn back to Orochimaru. "Oops, sorry Hina-chan." Orochimaru couldn't help but laugh, he liked these kids.

"You know, I like you three."

"Gross." He couldn't help but smile as they all respond at once.

"I think you all deserve a gift." His head rushes forward. They were more than a little disgusted as they see his neck elongating. He was going straight for Sasuke but Naruko was having none of it. In one of the rare cases of her using her hands in combat she smacks the side of his head with her open palm. The smack does little to deter him but the sudden draining of his chakra does. This was fast! If he didn't have the reserves he did he would be feeling it pretty intensely. He is forced to back off. The girl had leached quite a bit of chakra from him.

"I don't know what he was trying to do but I'm not going to let him sink his fangs into you." Sasuke nods in appreciation. The redhead had just saved him from something horrible. He didn't know what it was but that was something fowl.

"He had been gathering chakra into his fangs, it was the same as the seal on Anko."

"So he was going to place that curse seal on me?"

"From his words I think he planned on placing it on all of us." The message was clear. They all had to stay the hell away from his teeth. Not that they wanted to get a close up of them anyways.

"Where the fuck are the proctors?" Anko was there when they mentioned Orochimaru's chakra. Surely she of all people would be on the lookout for him.

"They're on the way. I can sense Anko approaching with Anbu. They're ten minutes away at their current pace." Sasuke groans. That was likely too long. They wouldn't last that long against Orochimaru. The rest of their conversation was cut short as the Sannin rushes forward once more. He had grown tired of playing around and simply wanted to mark them now. They had conveniently told him that he has ten minutes to do so and then leave. Of course they didn't realize that. He would have to target Naruko, her eyes will be superior, but first he'll have to see if he can't force the other two away. Plus even if he doesn't get the redhead he doesn't mind giving her his gift.

He went straight for the Hyuuga this time and lashes out at her right side. She's forced to turn and block it but the power behind the strike is enough to send her flying backwards. She may be capable with only one hand, but her right side will always be a weakness. Maybe he can fix that one day, surely he can attach a new hand once he sways the team to his side. He's still not sure why they're intent on staying in Konoha. His spies had made it clear that the two girls had no interest in the village. Maybe if he killed off the Hyuuga they would leave.

No that won't work. He still has valuable experiments hidden in the clan. One that could even end up accomplishing one of his many goals. He's forced to block a kick as an angry redhead comes flying at him. He couldn't help but smile. The girl looked just like her father when she was angry. She may have had her mothers face, but her rage was clearly Minato's. It was much colder and much subtler but he could see it. He wondered if she realized just how similar the they looked like that. Well she'll find out one day. He suddenly found himself bound to a tree. The Genjutsu gets broken almost instantly but in that time he found another searing fireball headed straight for him. He found the redhead holding him in place and he couldn't help but smile. This would have worked on any chunin and likely most tokubetsu jonin, but he was an S-rank nin for a reason. He easily breaks her grip and flings her into the fireball. Naruko didn't have time to react and use her kekkei genkai before the flames engulfed her.

Sasuke gasps in horror as a horribly burned Naruko emerges from the fire. "Hinata where the fuck are you! I can't heal her like this." He could but they would both be helpless if he did. Naruko's breathing was labored. He couldn't wait, if he did she could die. He checked her pulse and it was fading. The burns were so bad. If she hadn't been in Sage Mode (or if the Juubi wasn't inside of her) she would have died. Her long and beautiful hair was in a charred ashy ruin now. It was maybe salvageable at the shoulder length but most of it couldn't be saved. He had to tacitly ignore her clothes that were burnt off and focus on the burned skin. He could tell the Juubi was working overtime but even that didn't seem to be enough. He looked up as a shadow approaches over head and sees the Sannin standing over them. He extended his neck down toward the girl without a word.

Two things happen at once that no one had been expecting. The first was that Sasuke's eyes suddenly took on a change morphing into a shape like that of an atom. Black fire shot out of his eyes and forced the Snake Sannin to jump away. Or he would have had the second surprise not happened. His body was impaled on spikes of wood that shot from the ground, they carved a path from an enraged Hinata. He couldn't dodge as the fire consumed him. Hinata didn't have time to ponder how she did that because she had a wounded girlfriend to tend to. Sasuke was quick to start performing the Shōsen **Jutsu** (Mystical Palm Technique). At the same time Hinata started to apply some of the healing salves she had made. They wouldn't really cure the burns but it would make the process easier for Sasuke and would relieve some of Naruko's pain.

The girl was lucky she had the Juubi inside of her or else she would have died. Hinata noticed for the first time that Sasuke's eyes were bleeding and had changed. "Sasuke I think you activated your Mangekyo." She could tell it was his Jutsu that did this, though it was likely an accident. His guilt had probably been what had activated the advanced doujutsu. He nods and cuts the chakra to his eyes, they were draining him fast. Then for the first time thinks about the wooden spikes impaling the still burning Sannin.

"And it looks like you have Mokuton." There was no skirting around the fact, she had used the legendary bloodline. But how? She was a Hyuuga not a Senju, so the bloodline shouldn't have been possible for her. They're interrupted by laughing from the Sannin who evidently hadn't died.

"Kukuku, my experiment couldn't have gone better. Implanting the Shodaime's DNA in the egg cells of a Hyuuga from the main branch." Hinata felt sick, this bastard did something to her mother? And potentially to her and her sister? "This was certainly my best attempt to recreate Mokuton yet." They couldn't do anything as once more he coughed out a perfectly healthy body. To their surprise the man flees. It was only as Naruko coughs herself awake a few minutes later that they find out why.

"I can still feel him, he's out of chakra." The other two nod, though both tell her to save her strength. That perfect healing technique had to cost him a huge amount of chakra, and he had used it twice. That along with Naruko draining him must have left him exhausted. "Sorry about my hair, Hina-chan." She couldn't continue as a fit of coughing erupts from her. Her lungs had been damaged by inhaling the fire as she was thrown through it.

"Naru-chan your hair is the last thing I care about right now." Her girlfriend was barely alive, she was thankful for just that much.

"You should really save your strength Naruko." He was exhausting his chakra just to heal her, but the results were showing as the her skin slowly returned from a charred almost black color to a harsher red. He didn't have enough chakra to fully heal her. "Hinata we need to get her to the tower, I'm sure they have Medics there or can call one. I'm running out of chakra and she still has second degree burns." And he wasn't proficient enough yet to work on her damaged lungs. He was more sure than ever that Medical Jutsu was the right choice, his teammate would likely be dead right now otherwise.

"Can you make her well enough to move?" He nods and Hinata starts to stand guard, they couldn't afford for any other threat to arrive right now. Still there was something else she had to check. She pulls out the wooden heart Naruko gave her so long ago. It didn't look much like a heart anymore as branches had grown out of it wildly. If she had really been the one to use Mokuton then perhaps this could help her. She might have been the one causing the branches all along, so if it was reacting to her chakra then this would tell her. At least she thinks. She channels chakra into it and indeed multiple new branches sprout out of the heart. She couldn't help but wonder if Naruko had accidentally given her the key to unlocking the bloodline. She knew nature chakra was in it so maybe that had to do with it. And the genes that Orochimaru had a hand in giving her.

She shivered in disgust, how had no one known he had done so to her mother? Surely if her mother was missing for even a few days then people would notice. She was a member of the main branch for a reason! So did Hanabi-chan have it too? Or had she been the only one? Was this what he meant by his creation had done an excellent job. But that didn't sound like he was referring to her, so then what was he referring to? She's snapped out of her thoughts as Sasuke says. "She's ready, let's go." They didn't have time to waste. Naru-chan needed help and she needed it now.

They didn't get a chance to leave as the three genin from Oto arrive. The two curse, Naruko was still out of commission and Sasuke was mostly drained from healing her. They had only been given a small break after fighting the S-rank nin and now they have to deal with this shit. The Oto genin didn't even get a chance to say anything before Hinata rushed forward and knocked the one with the strange gauntlet unconscious with a kick to the head. Well he might have been dead, she hadn't held back with that kick and having chakra cut off from the brain tended to be fatal. The other two seemed unfazed as they rush forward. "Lord Orochimaru ordered us to be rid of you."

Hinata had all she needed to not feel remorse for killing these fools. Naru-chan was still hurt and these genin served under the man who had done it. Well this is worth a shot. She tried to channel the Mokuton but nothing happens. Figures, she only managed with the heart because it was somehow linked to it, and when saving Naruko because she was desperate. She quickly activates a Kaiten to deflect the airwaves and senbon they threw at her. She quickly traps them both in a Genjutsu, though the girl breaks it quickly. She probably uses Genjutsu too. Still she was faster than the girl and managed to quickly execute the remaining boy. This time she was sure he died, as she had crushed his ribs, and landed a strike to his heart. She turns her attention the the girl, who had been about to throw senbon at her. The girl freezes up and then quickly snaps out of it. She ran without looking back. Hinata's eyes slide over to a nearby bush.

"Shikamaru, Choji, Ino. Are you three going to come out?" She had spotted them watching and waiting while she fought. Team 10 steps out of the bush cautiously. They had just witnessed Hinata kill two other genin in a span of a few seconds. "Don't worry, unless you plan on attacking you're not our enemy." She quickly fished out the Oto teams scroll and tossed it to the other team. "We don't need it."

Shikamaru and nods his thanks, he was content to get the free pass and leave but Ino had to stir trouble. "What happened?"

"A missing nin sneaked in." Hinata saw no need to tell them it was Orochimaru or about the battle. She could still have to fight them in the exams after all. Ino didn't seem content with that but she didn't press the issue. The team looked like they had enough trouble as it was. They were still leaf nin, and she didn't want to cause trouble. Shikamaru would argue differently if she voiced that out loud.

"Will Naruko be alright?" Choji, ever the kind one, was concerned.

"She'll be fine when we get her to a more experienced medic, I've done what I can." Team 10 hadn't been there to see the worst of the burns before so they didn't know how bad they had really been. But the Juubi had stabilized her long enough for Sasuke to heal her.

Shikamaru took immediate note of the fact that Sasuke gave away the fact he knew Medical Jutsu, it was good info to have and take into consideration if he were to face him. "Well since you seem to have what you need then we'll be on our way." They had an exam to finish and he didn't want to get involved with this mess.

Ino was having none of that. "Shika! We're going to stay and help them!"

"Troublesome." He rolled his eyes. He wasn't going to push the issue. Naruko and Hinata were still his friends, and if the rest of his team wanted to help he wouldn't argue. He just thought it'd be too much of a pain.

"Choji help me carry Naruko, we have to be careful not to aggravate her wounds." Choji was the strongest among them and would be able to lend a hand when it came to carrying her, while Sasuke helping would mean he could check on her condition as they move. The plump boy nods and gently places his friend on his back. He had to hold back a gag as he smells her burnt hair. It was a shame, he always thought her fiery red locks were gorgeous.

* * *

It took the group longer than Team 7 would have liked to reach the tower. If they had been traveling at their fastest pace then it would have taken them a few minutes, but with the other team and a wounded teammate, not to mention the exhaustion Sasuke was combating, it had taken them closer to half an hour to arrive. Hinata had spent most of it somberly mulling over her having Mokuton and the state her girlfriends in. She'd have to get her new clothes, her current ones were destroyed to the point that the only thing covering her modesty was the jacket Hinata had taken off and placed around her waist. Of course the burned flesh did little to add appeal to the barely clothed girl.

God She had been so close to losing her, S-rank nin seemed to just keep coming for her girlfriend. Hinata told the redhead how much she loved her all the time, but she'd do it even more now. She had to, she couldn't stand the thought of the redhead not knowing. Fuck it, she was going to win all of this so she can spend all her time with the redhead. And if she didn't she would leave the clan, she was sure Naruko could undo any curse seal they placed on her. The redhead had passed out again, it was a good thing too, otherwise she would probably be in agony right now.

The group looked at the writing on the wall, the riddle obviously referred to the scrolls, as the mind was associated with heaven and the body with earth. Shikamaru seemed to get it too as they both tell their teams to open the scrolls. They do so and Iruka and another chunin pop out of the scrolls. They nod seeing both scrolls but then they notice Naruko.

The other chunin quickly rushes off to find a medic, or really to find several medics to move her to the Med Bay. He returns quickly with the medics and Naruko is rushed out. Iruka coughs to get their attention. "Right well, congratulations on passing the second phase of the exam. You'll be in rooms 203 and 204. What happened out there?" He knew about the demon and the fact that Naruko was injured so bad meant something awful must have gone down.

"We encountered Orochimaru." Iruka's eyes go wide. This would have to be reported to the Hokage immediately.

"Did he do anything to you? Besides burning Naruko?" They shake their heads. They weren't going to tell him about the bloodlines or the fact that he had an interest in them. They didn't trust the Hokage and they knew Iruka would tell him. All hell would break loose if people knew Mokuton was in Konoha again. They also weren't going to mention his attempts to mark them, he hadn't succeeded and the last thing they need is further scrutiny. "Well then get some rest, you deserve it."

* * *

"I'm back again."

"So you are."

"Why did you bring me here again."

Kaguya smiled at the girl. "Is it wrong to want to see my granddaughter?"

"I guess not. But I'm not your granddaughter."

"That's true, you aren't. Yet at the same time you are." Naruko couldn't help but notice most of her shadow was on the tree this time. Naruko hadn't seen that before.

"So why have your chakra keep me alive? It seems like you had the perfect opportunity to be free?" Kaguya shakes her head.

"No my time for freedom has not come yet. It will come soon, or when you free me yourself. But until then I will wait. You know, I never did understand why your incarnations were so intent on Asura. You're the second in a row now. Though sometimes you seem more interested in Indra."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll find out."

"If they're your grandchildren then who is your child?"

"I have three sons." Though one was unlike the other two. He wasn't human, and was far more obedient.

"So then who are they?"

"You'll remember, one day."

"Do you have to always try and be so mysterious?"

"Of course, it's part of my charm." Naruko laughed at that, it would seem even Kaguya could take it easy sometimes.

"So then Kaguya, is there anyway to control your chakra?"

The woman shakes her head. "No, not truly. No human can manage all of the hate the Juubi bares. Only for the brief times I'm conscious will I be able to lend it to you."

"What do you mean conscious?"

"I've said to much already. Plus our time is up. You should regain consciousness soon." And with that Naruko was flung from the temple and into the real world. She looked to her side and sees her girlfriend resting on the side of her bed. Naruko smiles and runs a hand through her girlfriends hair.

"I love you so much Hina-chan."

"I love you more." Hinata had been awake and smiled gently at her girlfriend. "I'm glad you're awake."

"How long have I been out?"

"Two days. We're in the tower." Naruko nods, so at least they had passed.

"And are you alright." Hinata wasn't surprised her girlfriend was worried about her, despite being the injured one.

"Yeah, I'm perfectly fine." Naru-chan nods and drifts back off to sleep. She had been unconscious and she was still tired. Hinata leans in hand gives her girlfriend a quick peck on the lips. "Naru-chan, I'll always be there for you, my lovely wife." She had come too close to losing the redhead, she wasn't going to play around anymore. The Hyuuga family would allow them to marry or she would ensure they can't get in the way.

* * *

Sasuke had never been happier he knew Medical Jutsu. If he hadn't he was sure Naruko would have died. He may not have been able to save Hinata's hand back in wave, but he had saved Naruko's life here and now. If there had been any doubt in his decision before there was none now. He had unlocked the Mangekyo without having to kill either of the other two as well. The path towards Itachi was clearer than ever and he was ready for him. He had level the playing ground between his brother and him.

He had to wince as a sharp pain went through his eyes. He couldn't help but wonder why the world seemed the slightest bit dimmer.

* * *

A/N Oh boy this chapter took forever. I apologize for the wait you've had to endure. I was busy Saturday after posting chapter 12, and then I was working on school work both Sunday and Monday. Then Tuesday was spent traveling and I only finally had an opportunity to start on the chapter Wednesday. I didn't finish writing it until today.

Anyways, excuses aside here's chapter 13. Hope you enjoyed. It was pretty action heavy unlike the past few chapters. So what did you think of Hinata having Mokuton? I've been planning that for a long time now and it was finally time to bring it in. Sasuke also unlocked his Mangekyo, and has also started to go blind.

For those of you who haven't voted in the poll I'd recommend you do so if you want me to cover your favorite arc. Anyways, I'm probably gonna be pretty busy for the next few days so I wouldn't expect a chapter until Sunday at the earliest. For you American readers I hope you have an excellent Thanksgiving and for everyone else, well happy Thursday. Also thank you, all of you. It's almost been a month since I first published the story and in that time I've gotten 154 followers, 137 favorites, 67 reviews, and 11500 views. You people are amazing beyond belief. Thanks so much for all the support you've shown me.

Last thing, with the completion of this chapter I've finished NaNoWriMo and broken through 100k words in one go.

CM 11/22/2018


	14. Seeing Green

Naruko had to admit her head felt weirdly light. She didn't like it. Her hair wasn't a mess anymore since Ino had kindly offered to help her cut her hair into something more acceptable, but it was so short, Hina-chan had only allowed the other girl to do so because fashion was her specialty. Her hair, which had previously grown down to her calves, was now a little shorter than shoulder length. Oddly Ino had thought to leave some of the singed hair. She had said with some good use of conditioner and chakra it could be saved, though it would more or less remain black until she cut it off. She asked Hina-chan about what she thought about her keeping the tips black and the other girl seemed to like it.

Naruko was surprised her girlfriend didn't seem to care to much about the hair being shortened, but the other girl had said she was more worried about the redheads life. Though Naruko was a little upset at the loss of her hair senbon. It's not like they had been destroyed, though the charms would have, but they were lost when the hair they had been holding up was burned away. And with them cooped up in the tower for these past few days they've been unable to go and look for them.

The redhead had recovered pretty well from the burns, though her Shinobi clothes were ash. She had four healing factors working in her favor so her recovery speed was amazing. Her clothes on the other hand had no such advantage. She's actually in Hina-chan's pajamas that she keeps for easy missions. They weren't racy but they were baggy and only really served to cover her modesty, they were also to big for her in general. Not that Naruko really cared that much, she's pretty sure she'd have an advantage if her opponent was distracted by nudity. Naruko would have worn her own, but along with her clothes being destroyed so were all of the spare things she kept in her mission scroll as it too had been destroyed.

Hina-chan seemed weirdly pleased by Naruko being dressed in her clothes. Naruko didn't really understand why, but if Hina-chan seemed to like it maybe she'd do it more often. She had to admit even though her clothes were to big on her, especially around the chest and length of the legs, they were comfortable and smelled of lavender, just like her girlfriend, and Naruko found some comfort in that. She had gotten a few weird looks from the other people who finished the exams when she was spotted wearing this but she shrugged, she didn't really care what they thought.

She was receiving more than a few odd looks at the moment, and two of desire, as she and the rest of the genin were gathered in the main room of the tower. The Hokage was up at the front of the room and was giving some speech about war or something like that. She noticed the Konoha jonin were standing behind him. When she looked at Kurenai-sensei she found the older woman giving her a curious look that also seemed to mix with a deadpan, probably at her hair and state of dress. Looking around the room she spots the teams who passed. Five of them were from Konoha, then there was one from each major village and then Fuu's team from Ame. Fuu seemed pleased when she made eye contact with the green haired girl and mouthed something but she couldn't tell what (Hina-chan was the one who could read lips, not her).

"Now then, are there any of you who would like to forfeit? As of this stage you will be going on alone, so if you forfeit your team is not subject to the same." The other two genin from Ame raise their hands, if Naruko had to guess it's cause they only needed Fuu to make it this far. Likewise Kabuto raised his hand. The final person to raise their hand was one of the genin from Kiri, leaving just Haku and a nervous looking boy. "Right then, since to many of you have stayed we'll be having preliminary matches to decide who can advance to the finals." The Hokage was going to continue speaking when a sickly looking man interrupted.

"If I may Hokage-sama I'd like to take it from here." The Hokage nods and the man coughs as he was starting to speak again. He clears his throat and then continues, "I'll be you proctor for the preliminaries and the finals. The matches will be one on one. You win if you-" The man was interrupted by a fit of coughing, "incapacitate your opponent, they surrender, or I call the match. Killing is permitted, though if I tell you stop and you don't you'll be disqualified." He started coughing again. "Now then if you'll head up to the balconies we can get started. Names will appear randomly on the screen to decide the matches." The genin head up the balconies, with Konoha mostly taking the one to the left of the Hokage. The Hokage lifts a hand and the jonin quickly join their genin teams. The screen changes and two names appear. "Would Fuu of Ame and Omoi of Kumo please come down." The green haired girl had been approaching Naruko but pouts upon hearing her name, none the less she happily jumps down. The boy seemed to be contemplating forfeiting and Naruko recognized him from the first phase. This time he seemed to be spouting some nonsense about angering the ruler of Ame who sees himself a god and it leading to the destruction of Kumo. He didn't get to continue as a girl with dark skin and red hair pushes him over the railings.

"Just get down their you idiot!" Naruko is pulled from her thoughts as her sensei approaches.

"So what happened?" Kurenai says, gesturing to Naruko.

Hinata speaks up, "We encountered Orochimaru in the forest, which I'm sure you already know about." Kurenai actually only knew a genin team had encountered him, all of the jonin were made aware of it within an hour of it happening. Her team seemed fine so she wasn't terribly concerned, she really figured it would be just like them to fight an S-rank nin when they shouldn't have to. "In the process Naru-chan got burned including her clothes and mission scroll." Well that explains the state of dress. "We can't really say the rest here, so we'll tell you later." Kurenai nodded in understanding, everyone else could be a potential enemy so telling it here would be bad, whatever it was.

Naruko turned her attention back to the ground below just in time to see Fuu deliver a powerful punch to Omoi. She was sporting a few cuts but they were all surface level. Naruko kind of figured that would be the case since Fuu was closer to Jonin in strength. The match hadn't even lasted long as she ruthlessly knocked the boy out. Naruko shrugged, it figured, that was just his shitty luck. She was declared the victor and Omoi was dragged off by some medics who wanted to make sure he was fine. The screen changed again. "Temari of Suna and Tenten of Konoha please come down." Naruko didn't have time to focus on the match as she hears a cry from Fuu.

"Naruko-chan!" The redhead turned to see what the other girl wanted only to find the green haired girl pulling her into a kiss. She had almost forgotten that Fuu was interested in her. She couldn't maintain that train of thought, as she was distracted by the feeling of the other girls hand traveling quickly down her back and squeezing her ass. Naruko didn't have time to think on that as she is suddenly yanked back by her girlfriend. Much to her surprise Hina-chan seemed to want to cop a feel in response as she cups one of Naruko's breasts, small as they are.

"Hina-chan?!" Naruko didn't mind but her girlfriend had always avoided doing stuff like this before. She must be pretty jealous this time around.

"She's mine Fuu. From her beautiful red hair, to her cute face, to her perfect ass, every part of her is mine. Don't touch my wife." Naruko wasn't sure how to feel about the possessiveness, but she didn't mind too much, she understood the other girl just felt a bit threatened, and it probably didn't help that Naruko could have died a few days ago.

Fuu didn't seem intimidated as she walked up to them once more. Naruko had to resist a squeak as Fuu seemed to pull her in once more. The redhead wasn't sure how to react to all of this, it was just so weird. "But she's so cute, and I can practically feel her skin through these thin clothes. And I don't see a ring on her fingers, which means she's still in the market." This was getting weird. Naruko had dealt with other people crushing on her before, but no one had been like this and never had they made Hina-chan so touchy. "So then Naruko-chan my offer from wave still stands."

"No thanks Fuu, I still love Hina-chan." The other girl shrugs, before smiling.

"Maybe that can change someday. Just remember, if you want a good time, or she breaks your heart, then you can always come find me." Of course Fuu didn't back off. She seemed pretty happy being only inches away from the redhead.

"Temari of Suna is the victor, would Uzumaki Naruko of Konoha and Akado Yoroi of Konoha please come down." Naruko doesn't hesitate to break free of both girls and head down. She had started to feel weird from Hina-chan having a hand on her chest, and she could have sworn Fuu was going to put a hand on her ass again. It's not like the contact felt bad, but she didn't expect it and thought the place was a little weird. And if she thought it was a little weird then it must have been really weird. She was distracted by these thoughts and missed the proctor calling for the match to start. She was knocked from her thoughts as she was shoved to the ground and the other genin started draining her chakra.

"Oh you can drain chakra? What kind of Jutsu is that, is it a kekkei genkai?" If it was she may have stumbled upon family, but she knew there were some techniques that absorbed chakra, like an earth dome technique she had heard about from Jiraiya.

"No, this technique took years for me to perfect and allows me to drain chakra through contact with my hands." He was a little concerned, most genin would already be feeling tired by now.

"So then can you drain it from Jutsu or even the environment?"

He looked at her oddly before answering, "No." She sighs, so whatever this is it's not the same.

"Then let me show you how it's done." She didn't even move as she started to drain the chakra out of him. Her rate was much faster and the man fell unconscious within seconds. She pushes him off of her and stretches. If he had been a foreign nin she would have probably just killed him, but killing a Konoha nin could get her in trouble.

"Uzumaki Naruko wins! Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino please come down."

She was a little curious as to why Fuu was wolf whistling but then realized her stretching had shown off a decent amount of her stomach, and probably made her breasts pop up a bit, despite the bagginess of the clohtes. Oops. She quickly stops and heads up, as the proctor calls her the victor. She didn't even get a chance to talk before her girlfriend rushes forward and pulls her into a hug. Oh god not again. Though this time at least she wasn't grabbing her breast. "Good job Naru-chan. I knew _my_ wife would win."

"Hina-chan you still haven't proposed you know."

"I know, but it doesn't change the fact that you're going to be my wife and basically already are."

"Maybe I should be your mistress, if you're marrying into a noble clan then you could have a mistress." And of course Fuu took her spot again, completing this Naruko sandwich.

"Fuu can you please stop squeezing my ass?" Hina-chan's aggressive strategy wasn't working so maybe a different approach would work for the redhead.

"Sure." And the other girl backed off easy as that. She stayed close, but she wasn't being so touchy feely. "By the way Hinata was right, you do have a perfect ass. Like I've seen a lot of ass in my day, but you already have an amazing one, I can't wait until you're older." The redhead was petite but she was just Fuu's type. When the girl filled out a little more the green haired girl was sure the small redhead would be even cuter. Sure Fuu might not have been much taller than her only a few inches, but she had to say the small redhead was adorable. "You know Hinata, we could always share her, it'd be one more person to shower her in love and protect her."

"I'm not sharing her, she's mine. I found her first and no one else can have her."

"Am I a stray cat or something? I didn't think finders keepers applied here." Also Naruko was the one who found Hina-chan, not the other way around.

"Are you saying you want us to share you?" Hinata raised an eyebrow at that. She doubted it, especially after the conversation in the alleyway about being able to love more than one person.

"No, I still only want to be with you, I'm just pointing out I'm not a possession."

"Yeah Hinata, keep treating her like that and she might just come to me anyways."

"Naru-chan I would never consider you a possession." Hinata certainly never wanted her girlfriend to feel like that.

"I know, you love me too much for that, but saying I'm yours makes it sound like I'm a belonging. Also could you two try and get along, Fuu is sort of a friend." Despite Fuu feeling her up whenever she gets a chance the other girl was funny, as far as she could tell from the few interaction they had, and didn't seem intent on harming her. Wait is that seriously all it takes for her to consider someone a friend? Damn Naruko didn't realize how low her standards really are.

"I'll try my best, but she's got to keep her hands to herself."

"Hey as long as Naruko-chan is the one to tell me to stop I will." What could she say, that ass practically begged her to feel it.

"Can you not start in the first place?" Naruko somehow always managed to be surprised by it and the other girl kept getting opportunities because of it. She should have expected it after her first encounter with the girl.

"No promises. So do you really consider me a friend?" Naruko nods. "I can get behind that, though I'd rather get behind you, but how come?"

"You knew about me and saw what happened on the bridge and still you seemed interested." It wasn't often something like that would happen, this girl seemed to completely accept her so she wanted to be her friend. "Also I have a weird habit of befriending people who have a crush on me or have had one." She had done so with both Sasuke and Konohamaru.

"Wow no offense but you have a low bar, but of course I'd accept you, if anything it just made you hotter." Hinata rolled her eyes, if nothing else she hadn't thought about it like her girlfriend had, no wonder she didn't seem to hate Fuu. The other girl was, if nothing else, an earnest person. She'd have to make sure to keep an eye on her none the less.

"Winner Yamanaka Ino! Uchiha Sasuke and Chojuro of Kiri please come down."

"Finally, I couldn't stand to watch the three of them any longer." Oh yeah, Sasuke had seen all of that hadn't he? Well if nothing else he got to see two cute girls cop a feel of a third cute girl. If anything he should be thanking them. At least that's what Hinata and Fuu thought.

"Sorry Sasuke, good luck in your match." He was her best friend of course Naruko wanted him to win. She didn't really care about the fact that he had to watch, but it bothers him and so if nothing else she'd apologize to make him feel better. "You know maybe you should get a girlfriend, I think it'd do you some good." Hina-chan and Fuu nod their heads.

"Yeah, maybe then you'd appreciate when three hotties are having hot lesbian action in front of you."

"Fuu knock it off, the only lesbian action will be between Naruko and me, you're not involved."

"And you three are already back at it." Kurenai was quietly stifling a laugh, Sasuke won't ever catch a break around these three. "Why don't you tease sensei or something."

"But she isn't as fun to tease as you. Well most of the time."

"Yeah but you know whose the most fun to tease, Naruko-chan?"

"Naru-chan don't answer that."

It was too late, "Who?"

Fuu quickly pulled Naruko into a hug and said, "Hinata of course." She got to play with Naruko and tease Hinata by doing this, two birds with one stone as they say.

Sasuke had decided to ignore them on his way down. He might just go insane if he continues to watch them. When he reached the ground he looked at his opponent. The boy seemed overwhelmed and extremely nervous. But Sasuke wasn't about to underestimate him, especially since the boy had a zanbatou strapped to his back. From how he understood it the only nin in Kiri that did so were the ones who were training to be one of the Seven Swordsmen. He activates his Sharingan as the proctor calls for the match to begin. The two lock eyes and he instantly casts his Genjutsu. He uses his sensei's favorite **Magen: Jubaku Satsu** (Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death). The boys eyes glaze over and Sasuke rushes forward. The boy breaks the Illusion and jumps away from Sasuke's kunai but still gets lightly cut across the chest.

"Go Sasuke! Kick his ass! Show him why you can handle being our boyfriend!" He has to resist the urge to turn back and glare at Naruko as she collectively messes with him and his two fan girls present.

Hinata joins in. "We'll be sure to give you a nice reward if you win." He hates them. He hates them so much. Judging by Ino's squawk so does she.

"I'm not normally into boys but you're feminine enough that I wouldn't mind joining in." It seemed Fuu had quickly picked up on what they were doing. At least Kurenai-sensei wasn't joining in, though that was likely just because she was in front of the Hokage. He's distracted from his thoughts as a bullet of water comes flying at him. He dodges fairly easy, having not bothered activating his resistance seals for the preliminaries. He knew he was at a small disadvantage this fight. The other nin used water which would counter his fire, and he had already shown he knew Genjutsu. And getting in close seemed like a death wish. Well he had prepared a seal, but he didn't want to show the rest he could use seals quite yet.

Watching the blue haired boy he quickly mimics the other boys hand seals and fires back with an equally powerful water bullet. The boy hadn't spoken the true name of the jutsu so he couldn't shout it out. He was a little disappointed, that's part of the fun, even if it isn't very ninja like. The boy suddenly rushes forward and tries to slash the Uchiha with his sword. Sasuke easily ducks under the blade and retaliates with a kick to the temple. He may or may not have taken that from Naruko by accident.

Chojuro seemed dazed and Sasuke takes advantage of the fact. He quickly performs his newly copied jutsu and it hits the Kiri nin in the chest. The boy is knock off his feet. Sasuke rushes forward and pins him, placing a kunai at his neck.

"Uchiha Sasuke wins! Inuzuka Kiba vs Kamizuru Kurotsuchi." The Uchiha stands up and starts to head up the stairs, he pointedly ignores all of the cheering girls. Ino and Sakura, who had returned for the end of the fight, were the most shrill. Meanwhile his friends were busy teasing him and congratulating him at the same time.

"You must have really wanted that reward Sa-su-ke-kun." God he hated Hinata so much right now.

"If I say I'm gay will you knock it off?"

"That depends are you?"

"No, but you are and so is Naruko. What would you do if I actually accepted this nonsense?"

"Probably make you choke on your eyes for trying to get with my girlfriend."

"Speaking of why aren't you attacking Fuu? She was blatantly fondling Naruko in front of you."

"I'm already planning her execution, but for now I must wait sense I know she's stronger than me." Fuu was jonin level, Hinata on the other hand was only mid to high chunin level.

"Naruko-chan your girlfriend is scary! Protect me!" Fuu cried against the redhead.

"Well that depends, will you let go of my tits?"

"But they're so soft and their small size makes them nice and perky!"

"Yeah but it's starting to get weird, I wouldn't care if we were dating but I'm in love with Hina-chan." Hinata and Sasuke stare at Naruko a little weirdly. The redhead is only starting to think what Fuu has been doing is weird?

"So then if you started dating me would you let me have my way with you?"

"Well that would require breaking up with Hina-chan which I don't see happening. But if I was in love with you like I am Hina-chan then I probably would." She's been waiting for Hina-chan to finally decide they're ready. In all honesty Naruko didn't really care and would have been fine if they took each others virginity the night they started dating. Of course Naruko's pretty sure that part of the reason the white eyed Hyuuga is waiting, to make sure the redhead is absolutely sure she's not getting used.

"Great, then all I have to do is seduce you!"

"I'd wish you good luck but I'd rather you fail and I stay with Hina-chan. Now once again, will you let go of my tits?"

"Fine, but only because my future girlfriend is asking."

"Fuu she is not your future girlfriend, she's my future wife."

"Can you two not start this again?"

"Okay." The two girls chorused. Fuu smiles deviously upon hearing it while Hinata glowers.

"Kamizuru Kurotsuchi wins! Will Hyuuga Hinata and Karui of Kumo please come down!"

Naruko leans in and gives Hinata a quick kiss. "Good luck Hina-chan."

Hinata nods and heads down. She had to admit, it's kind of funny she's up against a nin from Kumo. They had tried to kidnap her when she was a child, hell it was part of the reason she's as close to Naruko as she is now. Though Naruko's involvement is a secret that only the Hokage, her father, the Anbu present and of course the two girls knew. Her eyes flick to her cousin who is scowling angrily. Well two objects of his hate are gathered in one place. Those being the Hyuuga main branch who sacrificed his father and Kumo who created the ordeal in the first place.

"You know you have very pretty hair, though it'd be better if it were a shade darker." Looking at the Kumo nin across from her she couldn't help but note the red hair. If it were darker it would look just like Naru-chan's. The girl had dark skin, a little darker than Fuu actually, and golden eyes. The girl was beautify that much she was certain of. Of course Hinata would never think anyone could match Naru-chan's ethereal beauty.

"Thanks, I guess." The Kumo nin didn't really care to be complimented by some nin from Konoha. The Hyuuga seemed to be more Samui's type. Of course everybody with breasts was Samui's type.

The proctor calls for them to begin and Karui moves forward drawing her sword in the process. She circles to the Hyuuga's right always keeping the handless side in front of her. She waits for what seems to be an opening in the Hyuuga's guard and then lunges forward, fully intending on running her through. Much to her surprise the white eyed girl uses her stump to bat the sword away while connecting a Jyuken strike to the redheads shoulder.

Hinata might not be able to fight directly without the hand but she can still use it in combat. Looking at the girl from Kumo she couldn't help but feel this idea had payed off. She had managed to disable the girls right shoulder, though by the looks of it she's left handed much like Hinata. Still one less arm is still good for the heiress.

It would seem the redhead didn't know how to deal with this and lunged at her wildly, this time Hinata deftly moves around the strike and, much to the surprise of those who knew how Hyuuga fought, lashes out with a kick, this one connecting with the ribs on Karui's right side. "It's over, I've disabled one of your lungs, if I don't undue it soon you will die."  
Most of the genin from Konoha were shocked, how could one of their classmates be so brutal? The jonin on the other hand nod in approval, the girl was quick and efficient. The proctor decided it was enough and calls out. "Hyuuga Hinata wins! Now please restore her lung." Hinata nods and quickly opens the tenketsu.

"She should still be taken to a medic, even that brief time will have damaged her lungs." The proctor nods and calls one in. Hinata idly notes that Kakashi slipped Kurenai-sensei several thousand ryo. Whatever, that's none of her business. She walks up the stairs and is forced to brace herself as her girlfriend flies into her arms and kisses her. She couldn't help but wrap her arms around the smaller girl and lean into the kiss.

"Will Hyuuga Neji and Kankuro of Suna please come down?"

Hinata quickly raises a hand to block the shove from her cousin. She and Naruko had been in the way and he saw it fit to try and shove them. "Move failure. You too deadlast."

"Remember the seal is one handed, insult my girlfriend again and I will use it on you Neji-niisan." She didn't hate him, but she was ruthless when it came to those who harmed her girlfriend in anyway.

"Fate has already decreed you two will be separated." He was aware of the deal with the elders, it was hard not to be when they wanted him to defeat her in the finals so she would lose the deal.

"It's a good thing I forge my own fate then." The boy simply sneers and walks down.

"You know you'd think after he lost to our team he would have calmed down."

Hinata pecks her girlfriend on the lips before responding. "He had started to, but then I lost my hand and it reaffirmed his notion that we're failures."

"It's dumb."

"True, I hope he understands one day why he's wrong. He's still my cousin, and I do want him to learn to be happy." Hinata didn't hate him, not like she did the elders. He, perhaps more than anyone else in the clan, was the victim of circumstance. Hinata also knew he can never be allowed to know the truth of that night, for he would probably try to kill her, her father, and her girlfriend. His father had died in place of her own when neither of them committed any wrong.

Looking down at the arena she watches as he decimates Kankuro, the boy was at a disadvantage. All Neji had to do was play along with his ruse and then attack the puppeteer at the last moment. "Winner Hyuuga Neji! Will Gaara of Suna and Rock Lee of Konoha please come down."

"Yosh!" Well Lee was exuberant as always. He's probably been itching for a fight this entire time. The Suna nin seemed much more subdued, though he smiled at them as he went down.

The fight was surprisingly long, and Lee was unsurprisingly fast. If not for Gaara's ability to use his sand as a defense it would have been extremely lopsided. The fight had been in Gaara's favor up until lee dropped the weights. Naruko and Sasuke offered up that Lee seemed to be moving about as fast as Naruko when she undid her seals. Though not when she was in Sage Mode. That changed when he unleashed the first, second and third gate, the fight ended quickly after that. Lee had taken the win fairly easily from there as Gaara was just unable to keep up.

"Winner Rock Lee! Will Aburame Shino and Yuki Haku please come down."

"I forfeit." Well that was quick. "Why? Because the Yuki posses a natural advantage against my hive that could devastate it." Not surprising, Hyoton would kill most of the insects within seconds just from the freezing temperatures.

"Winner by forfeit Yuki Haku! Will Nara Shikamaru and Tsurugi Misumi please come down." Shikamaru was about to surrender, much like the Aburame heir, but Ino yells at him and with a sigh he heads down.

The fight was likely one of the few that would always be in the Nara's favor. Misumi had used a strange body stretching jutsu that allowed him to wrap around Shikamaru, and with an easy use of **Kagemane no Jutsu** (Shadow Imitation Technique) he had disabled the other boy (he was already connected to his shadow). From there it was a matter of untangling himself and then using the mans own kunai to make him surrender (He had insured his kunai were drawn with the opposite hand).

"Winner Nara Shikamaru! Will Samui of Kumo and Akimichi Choji please come down." The two girls of Team 7 pointedly ignore the kiss Samui blows them. Fuu however didn't.

"I see now, you two aren't into me because I don't have huge boobs like her!"

"Fuu that's not it at all. I might like big boobs," Naruko points a thumb to her girlfriends chest, "But I'm not into you because you're not Hina-chan."

"I didn't know you like them big."

"You've never asked. Hina-chan everything about you is my type. I couldn't imagine a single thing that would make you more beautiful to me." The only person she could think of that could match is Kaguya. And that's only because the woman truly had an unparalleled beauty that no mortal could ever hope to match.

"So you're not attracted to me at all?'

"Well you're certainly attractive, but you're too short."

"I'm taller than you."

"Barely, I like that Hina-chan is taller than me, it makes it more fun when we cuddle." It was like she was enveloped in Hina-chan's warmth and she liked that. "But make no mistake, you are very pretty Fuu."

"Winner Samui of Kumo! Akatsuchi of Iwa gets a bye." Iwa was unique in that it was the only ninja village to use partnerships instead of teams. Because of that their genin were allowed to compete with teams of two instead of three. They didn't always use partnerships but that was generally what they did. "Now then with thirteen moving on to the next round we need to assign the matches. Please come down and draw from this box." Samui went first since she was already standing there. Following that the genin from the other major villages went down and grabbed the sheets of paper from the box. Finally the seven winners from Konoha went down, along with Fuu, and grabbed theirs. "Now then simply call yours out in order, Number 1 goes first and pairs will be matches."

"One." Hinata said holding up the card. The proctor nods and writes it down.

"Two." Hinata grins maliciously as her cousin sneers at her. It would seem she would have a chance to correct his views and put him in his place in one go.

"Three." Kurotsuchi looked bored and annoyed. It suited her.

"Yosh! I am number Four." Lee looked exuberant as ever. He would get to fight a strong Kunoichi from Iwa his rival village, of course he was excited to engage in a most youthful bout.

"Five." Temari had a blank expression, she was still reeling from the fact that her brother lost. He was a prodigy and was expected to win it all.

"Six, troublesome." Shikamaru looked annoyed. Whether it was because he was up against a girl or because he simply didn't want to fight was anyone's guess.

"Seven." Sasuke wanted to get an earlier fight but nothing to be done.

"Eight." Fuu grinned viciously as she stares down her friends teammate.

"Nine." Ino called out wondering just who she'll get. She couldn't help but thank whatever god made Asuma-sensei suddenly focus on his team. She certainly would have lost to or tied with Sakura otherwise.

"Ten." Ino blanched at hearing that, Naruko was a tough fight when she was exhausted, being the first fight for the girl would be rough. The redhead couldn't help but wonder if it was purely by coincidence that she would get number ten. Maybe it's just that thing when she becomes aware of something new, like a new word for example, and suddenly it pops up everywhere.

"Eleven." Samui seemed bored and annoyed that she was at the end again. Though she was always bored when not with a pretty girl.

"Twelve." Akatsuchi looked relieved that he would actually be getting to fight rather than getting another bye.

"Thirteen." Looks like Haku was last, that's fine it means he gets the most time to observe his opponents and rest.

"Yuki Haku will receive a bye into the second match. Well then, you have a month until the third stage begins. It will take place at the Konoha Colosseum at nine o'clock."

* * *

"I want you three to know I'm incredibly proud of you."

"Thanks Kurenai-sensei." The three genin of Team 7 chorused together.

"Now then, you three need to tell me what happened in the forest. I waited until we got here, now what happened. I want to know everything leading up to and after your encounter with Orochimaru." The team was currently gathered at the Uchiha compound, as it was generally the most private and spacious area for them to meet.

"Well after entering the forest I tracked down a team with the scroll we needed. We swiftly defeated them." Kurenai nods at the redhead.

Sasuke picks up next. "Afterwords Naruko told us we need to leave as a fowl chakra was heading straight for us. It quickly caught up."

"It turned out to be Orochimaru of the Sannin. We did battle as he was far to fast for anyone, save Naru-chan, to escape from." Kurenai didn't approve of her genin fighting an S-rank missing nin but she gestures for them to continue nonetheless.

"He tried to mark us with the curse seal. He had nearly marked Naruko when Hinata and I stopped him."

"We both unlocked kekkei genkai." Kurenai raised an eyebrow at that. How exactly was this different from the doujutsu that they already had.

"Sasuke unlocked his Mangekyo, because he accidentally burned me when Orochimaru threw me through his fire jutsu."

"Is that why you're dressed like that and not wearing your headband? Short hair too I guess."

"I had honestly forgotten that my headband would be gone too. I'm gonna have to get it replaced." Or not, she didn't really care about it, but it also served to ID her as a ninja so it was probably a must.

"Anyways, I unlocked my Mangekyo and used it against him."

"So then what did Hinata do? Was it the higher level Byakugan we talked about potentially existing?"

"No it's. . . It's odd. I unlocked Mokuton."

"What?" Kurenai couldn't have heard that right.

"I unlocked Mokuton. Apparently Orochimaru mixed the Shodaime's DNA with Kaa-chan's egg cells. When I was born those cells transferred to me. At least that's what he said."

"I see, while I'm likely obligated to report both of these developments to the Hokage, I won't." Every shinobi needs their tricks and her genin were no exception. She could always feign ignorance. Not to mention the last thing they need is the Hokage trying to arrange a marriage for Hinata to continue the Senju legacy. The girl may have Mokuton but she was no Senju. "Well then on to the next matter at hand. What would you three like to do for training in the coming month? I could train all of you or I could prepare additional instructors so each of you could receive individual training."

"We should train separately. I want to face you two without having a chance to prepare a counter." The other two nod, the conclusion that they would reach the finals already forgone.

"Alright then, you're in luck because I thought you might say that. Sasuke I've arranged for Kakashi to train you during the month." None of the mans genin had passed and all she had to do was give him his money back and prod him about the resemblance to Obito and himself. "Hinata, how would you feel about Jiraiya training you? He said he want's to train either you or Naruko."

"Probably because he's a perv."

"Maybe, but that doesn't answer my question."

"I'll accept, I need to keep my abilities a secret from the family anyways." Besides the fact that she was up against Neji she was already plotting out how she would get rid of the elders, and letting them know the extent of her abilities was not conducive to that.

"Alright then Naruko you're with me." That was what Kurenai wanted anyways, she would have a month to perfect Naruko's use of Genjutsu and with any luck train the extent of her chakra absorption, she also planned on helping the girl learn her Taijutsu to a greater degree, and finally learn a few new Jutsu if they managed the time. Of course if either of the other two came to her for help then she would still be there. "Don't forget any of you can go to Jiraiya or myself for help, and Kakashi will probably help you Naruko if you go as well." The man was a toss up when it came to Hinata as he had no reason to, unlike Naruko who was Minato's daughter. "Any questions?"

"Is it sexual harassment if a girl I barely know but am sort of friends with squeezes my ass without asking?"

"Yes. You probably shouldn't let Fuu continue in the future." Of course Kurenai knew what she was talking about, she had been right there. "And by the way, it would still be sexual harassment even if Hinata did it. Because she doesn't have your consent."

"Okay that makes sense. Hina-chan if you ever want to cop a feel you can do so."

"I'll keep that in mind Naru-chan." She might just take her up on that offer the next time they cuddle all night. She had almost lost her girlfriend and not getting a chance to feel her softer flesh would be a shame. Oh well, guess they'll have to wait and see.

"That reminds me. Have I told you two how much I hate you?"

"Not recently no."

"Alright well I hate you, arguably as much as Itachi."

"Wow that's pretty intense. But we know you love us."

"I swear if you pull another stunt like that shit again I'm gonna kill you."

"So you don't want two hotties implying you're a monster in the sack?"

"Not when it would only agitate the annoying fangirls." Oh god what if they did it during the finals? He'd never live down the shame.

"Ah. So we should do so when fangirls aren't around."

"Naruko you're a menace and are making me go gray."

"Ease up Sasuke, I'm only kidding."

"I know, that's part of what makes it annoying."

Naruko just sticks out her tongue. "Right well if you two are done bickering then I think we're done here. You should get some rest, it's well deserved. And Naruko you should probably look into getting a new set of shinobi clothes." The redhead nods, she couldn't just go about in civilian clothes or her girlfriends over sized pajamas.

"We'll all meet at the training ground tomorrow and the other two will come to pick you all up. Once again, I'm incredibly proud of you all."

* * *

A/N Holy hell what an awful chapter. I had the worst case of writers block this chapter. I'm honestly not even very confident in the final product either, not like last time where I was very satisfied with what I wrote. I needed the preliminaries so the fights I listed could happen and so plans for the future could happen, but there were twenty five characters who all had fights and different abilities, most of which I didn't know. The only fight this chapter I was really happy with was Naruko's and that's just because I had planned it as soon as I remembered Yoroi. I honestly don't think I'm capable of getting this chapter to a point I'm happy with, but with it over with I can move on to chapters I have planned and am looking forward to writing.

So I've got some bad news for all of you as well. Being the college student that I am, I have finals in about a week and a half. I will definitely be putting the fic on a temporary hiatus as of December 7th so I can study and focus on finals. The hiatus should end by December 18th at the latest.

Once again I'm leaving a reminder to go vote in the poll if you haven't already.

Also As you may have noticed I replaced the Juubi with Sasuke in the tags. I did so because I felt like he has ended up playing a more important roll in Naruko and Hinata's life than the Juubi does.

Lastly I'll be curious to hear what you thought about the chapter. Are you as dissatisfied with it as I am? How were the interactions with Fuu? Are you excited for any of the matches in particular? What do you think about Naruko's haircut?

CM 11/28/2018


	15. Some Kind of Feeling

She wasn't an elite jonin for nothing. Likewise she was a jonin sensei and had to make sure her students always felt sure of their futures. So there was no way in hell she was going to openly display her shock at what her students had told her earlier today. Of course there was no conceivable way for her to not be shocked, Hinata was the result of an experiment and has Mokuton! The only thing that could surprise her more is if Kushina-sensei somehow came back from the dead. Though honestly if the woman found out how the village treats her daughter she wouldn't be surprised if she did so just to kick the village's collective ass.

So Hinata managed to successfully manifest the Mokuton in an attempt to save Naruko from receiving a curse mark. Well if nothing else it was a good thing for the group. The fact of the matter is there was no way this couldn't benefit them. Well it might paint a target on their back when it comes to ninja from other villages. But the team had the Hyuuga heiress, the last Uchiha, and the whole mess of things that could describe Naruko. This iteration of Team 7 would likely be the most infamous since the time of the Sannin. So given that they're already targets, one of them having Mokuton will be a far greater boon then bane.

"You know Kurenai, you really have grown quite beautiful in the past few years."

"Jiraiya, I will castrate you. You old toad."

The man shrugs. "Nothing I haven't been threatened with before." He had lost count of how many times Tsunade alone had threatened him. "So you wanted to talk about my training with the little Hyuuga?"

"Yeah, I'll get straight to the point. Orochimaru had a hand in her birth, she has wood in her veins." The mans eyes widen. The two of the were alone in her apartment, but the walls have eyes and ears, so she figured it's better to speak in code. Even if it's not very subtle.

"I see. And I assume you want me to help her learn to use it?" He hadn't really any experience with Mokuton, though he had helped train that Tenzo kid for a few months, but beyond that he had done nothing. Of course he doubts Kurenai is even aware of Tenzo's existence, as he is one of the villages greatest secrets.

Kurenai nods, "You should know just how potent it is. There is perhaps no greater tool."

"You're right about that. It's one of the strongest kekkei genkai, if she can master it then she'll be a shinobi unlike any before her." The Byakugan and Mokuton being used together sounded incredible. The girl would be unstoppable if she could master it.

"You know you seem to be taking this much better than I did." Though her genin thought she had taken the information with no trouble. It wasn't true, but there was no way she could show that.

"You forget Orochimaru is my teammate, there have only ever been four other people who knew him as well I do and three of them are dead." Sarutobi-sensei had never known Orochimaru as well as he thought, otherwise he would have known that giving the man the order to research jutsu for the good of Konoha, without ordering him to use ethics, would end in disaster. Jiraiya had known better, he knew his teammate and how he functioned. But he was acting on the Hokage's orders and he was Jiraiya's best friend, of course he wasn't going to stop him. Of course most of Konoha had come to think they now bitterly hated each other. That couldn't be further from the truth, all of the Sannin still met up for drinks once a year, because they didn't have much other family left. Sure it might have been a little treacherous, but it wasn't much more than tacitly allowing Danzo to have a second Anbu (even if they weren't called as such) under his command. "It doesn't surprise me in the slightest that he would pull something like this."

"Right well do you think you could manage to train her in it?"

"I can pull something together." He already had a basis, he could make it work. "Does she already know the basics of earth and water manipulation?"

"She does, all of my genin have completed the first stage of elemental manipulation for their natures. And have all started on the second stage."

"Well alright then, if nothing else she should have some control over it by the end of the month." He could work with that, he had managed more from less with Tenzo, and Hinata was supposedly real talented. "You know I'm surprised you're getting outside help for training them."

"I won't let my pride get in the way of my genin's growth."

"An admirable trait, I'll pick Hinata up at the training ground tomorrow. Unless she seeks you out on your own time she's my problem for the next month. Be sure to train Naruko well." Kurenai nods.

"I would do no less."

* * *

"You know Naru-chan I'm surprised you did such a good job picking out your new clothes."

"You think so?"

"Yeah, normally you have no since of style." Hinata didn't just buy Naru-chan clothes because she enjoys it, though she does immensely, but rather because the other girl was almost hopeless when it comes to style. Looking over her redheaded girlfriend she can't help but nod in approval. She was still in a dress, though this once was a deep red that went nicely with her hair. She was wearing a navy blue Obi that had her new forehead protector on it. Underneath the dress she was wearing what Hinata would like guess to be a black leotard, though she could only see the bit that stuck out at the chest. Along with that she had mesh armor covering her arms. Unlike the previous mesh it was black to blend in with the leotard, but was still visible against her pail skin.

"Is that all you have to say after we haven't spoken in a month?"

"Ah my mistake, you're as gorgeous as ever, and I've missed you." The redhead smiles at that. They had decided to not meet until the day before the exams, because they both wanted to fully throw themselves into training. Though Naruko nearly broke that multiple times to go see her girlfriend, but they had agreed and she wasn't going to break her word, at least not in regards to Hina-chan. The two girls were sitting on a stool in front of Ichiraku Ramen, they had figured it would be a good place to catch up and get a meal.

"So are you ready to face Neji tomorrow?"

"He won't be a problem." She had no doubt in her mind that she would crush him, and hopefully drill some hope into him. Weird how she plans on doing both. "You know I definitely liked it better when you had long hair, but I gotta say the black tips actually look pretty nice. It gives you an edgy look."

"Isn't being edgy a bad thing? Like that's how Sasuke used to be."

"First of all, Sasuke is still edgy. Secondly looking edgy and being edgy aren't the same thing, you're to inherently naive to ever be edgy, but you can pull the look off."

"You know most people would consider it an insult to be called naive."

"Yeah but everyone who knows you knows how naive you are. You're innocent, it's part of your appeal." Though she certainly planned on taking that innocence.

"Am I really innocent if I've killed other genin in cold blood?"

"Naru-chan you didn't even know what a threesome was until Anko mentioned having one with Kurenai-sensei and Hana-san."

"What can I say, I hadn't really thought about having sex with multiple people before that point. It's not like I haven't thought about sex before." She may or may not have experimented at getting off to the thought of her girlfriend, but she was a soon to be teenager with needs.

"Yes but you only know the bare minimum and what's been explained to you as it comes. And that makes you innocent. Also if you need an example of your naivete just think about how you let Fuu be your friend, despite the fact that her friend melted my hand. It's not a bad thing, but it's still a facet of who you are."

"Okay I kind of see your point."

"You should know by now I'm always right."

"Hina-chan that can't be true."

"And why's that?"

"Well for one there was the time you ignored me by accident for a while." That was still relatively recent and kind of hurts sometimes. But Naruko was nothing if not forgiving when it comes to her girlfriend.

"Okay I see your point."

"So yeah, you're not always right. Just most of the time."

"So then if I say you should be kissing me right now, would I be right?"

A polite cough interrupts them and they turn to Teuchi. "Don't kiss my second daughter right in front of me."

"Okay but what if I grope her instead?"

"If you were a boy I'd castrate you for that comment. Naruko-chan you're forbidden from seeing her anymore!"

"But Oji-san I'm just entering into my rebellious faze. So I'm gonna ignore that." Not that she thought he was serious. Well he might have been, it was hard to tell with him some times.

"Ayame! She's growing up again!"

"Tou-chan I'm right here. You don't have to shout."

"None of my daughters respect me." Naruko couldn't help but giggle at the absurdity of it.

"If it makes you feel better I'm not half as bad as Fuu." He had met the green haired girl once and nearly had a heart attack when he saw her grope the little redhead (they had gone to Ichiraku with her the night they got back from the exams). She was banned from the shop.

"That's not saying much." There weren't many people like Fuu so being better when it comes to Naruko wasn't hard.

"Fair point."

The two girls finish their meals and pay. While the Ichiraku family would never actually charge them for a meal, not after how they met Naruko all those years ago, the two girls still payed them. It was only right and it helped keep the family afloat. As it turns out a free meal is less so when it helps put the people they care for out of business.

"Are you two gonna come watch the exams tomorrow?"

"We'll be in the arena but we're gonna be vendors, we have a stall set up." The chunin exams would be a great time for business, of course they would be working.

"Alright well See you later then Ojisan! Bye Ayame-neechan!" The two girls quietly exit the stall. Naruko gives her girlfriend a quick peck on the lips and then says. "I'll see you tomorrow Hina-chan, you're up first so you better get some rest."

"I will Naru-chan. And don't think you can get away with forgoing rest either."

"Don't worry, I'm gonna need all the energy I can get if I'm gonna win." Hinata had convinced the redhead to give it her all, even if it means trying to beat her in the finals. She wanted to win but she, and likely the elders, wouldn't accept such a fake victory. Of course Hinata was fully confident she'd win. Her girlfriend was powerful, but Hinata had always shown to be stronger.

"Alright then. Night Naru-chan. I love you."

"I love you too." The two shared a quick hug and a chaste kiss then went their separate ways.

* * *

Sarutobi Hiruzen was tired. The years had weighed down on him, and it showed. It couldn't be more obvious to himself now that he stares at the other Kage gathered in the Kage box. He wasn't the oldest Kage there, no that honor goes to Onoki. But looking at them, and knowing his appearance, he can see he looks the oldest. Perhaps it's the guilt that he sacrificed his successors child for the greater good, or lying to his student about her health. He would likely make the same decision again, he firmly believed he made the right choice. But still the guilt eats away at him, just like every time he sent one of his ninja away on a suicide mission. It had to be done for the greater good, but he never had to be happy about it.

Looking at the other Kage, and a special guest that Onoki seemed especially upset over he can't help but wonder how things change, yet always seem to remain the same. Like every Raikage before him A was a huge man of dark complexion. The man looked much like his father, the third Raikage. Not just in his face but in his general countenance. He held the same aura of power and surprising intelligence behind all that brawn. He was the only man who could ever match the fourth Hokage in speed, and is currently the fastest man alive. He had slicked back blonde hair and a thin mustache of the same color. Like every Raikage before him he was named 'A' though why they did so Hiruzen had no idea.

Raza, the Kazekage, hadn't changed in the slightest. He was still a stern man that didn't seem to look at even his children with affection. The man's face didn't seem to show it's age in the slightest despite the fact that he's been the Kazekage for the past 16 years. Like all the Kazekage before him he possesses the Jiton. Though unlike his predecessors he uses gold sand instead of iron. The mans hair had always reminded him of the Uzumaki clan, another pang of guilt goes through him at the thought of them, but his hair was always a little off to make him a true member. The man stared down at the floor of the arena with the same callous look as ever, his expression practically non-existent.

Onoki was the most obvious in his lack of change. The fence sitter looked just as he did fifty years ago, though now he just looks older with white hairs and a hunch. He still had the same bulbous nose that he was almost infamous for, Hiruzen had to stifle a laugh at that. Still the man was unchanged. Just as was his views towards Konoha. It's curious then, why the man had decided to send genin to their village for the first time in over a decade. Said man was currently complaining about the non-kage sitting in the box, she in turned just smiled at him.

The woman in question had blue hair and orange eyes, from the report of wave this is Konan. Normally Hiruzen wouldn't allow a non-kage to the box, but the leadership of Ame was a mystery and this was a good chance to probe for information about the normally mysterious country.

The final Kage in the box was another woman, she was in a blue dress and had long reddish orange hair tied in a top-knot. The woman was the youngest among them and was the first female Kage. Terumi Mei was a force to be reckoned with. She had become the Mizukage at the young age of 14 towards the end of the third shinobi war when the third Mizukage was killed in battle. Now she's 28 and undeniably deserves her seat among them. She and Konan were both quite attractive, but it's almost a given for Kunoichi to be attractive, it was in the job description.

Accompanying each Kage was a single guard, Hiruzen of course had Jiraiya guarding him, it would do no good to have anything less. For the Raikage he had a dark skinned man that Hiruzen recognized as Killer Bee, A's brother. For the Mizukage she had a blonde man with purple eyes accompanying her, he had a scar running down his face. He's Kiri's jonin commander, Yagura. Onoki had his son guarding him, a man that seemed fairly intent on glaring at the collective audience from Konoha. Next to Raza was one of his elite jonin Pakura, known for use of the Shakuton. Finally Konan had brought a guard in the form of a red haired man that was wearing, what he guessed to be, an Ame Anbu mask. Speaking of Anbu it went unspoken that Hiruzen had the box filled with hidden Anbu. The other Kage likely knew, but none commented on it, as was tradition for these events.

Jiraiya was eyeing Konan with a look of recognition and remorse. Ah so that was why he recognized the name. She was one of the Orphans he had trained during the Second War. Perhaps she would be receptive to forming an alliance then, or at least a treaty of some sort.

"I still fail to see why you allowed the leader of some minor country to sit with us."

"Kamizuru-dono I assure you she deserves to sit among us." She might not have, truthfully, but information was more valuable then Onoki's pride. Funny how that works.

"Thank you for your kind words Sarutobi-dono." Konan was making pleasantries, really she was here for Fuu and Naruko but Ame had plans to make waves soon and it would do some good to establish themselves among the greater powers. She had no doubt that with Nagato they could match any of them, and that's not even considering the other S-class nin at their disposal. She had to resist eyeing Nagato as he stood behind her. She still didn't understand why he chose to come and watch, or why he decided to pretend she's the leader of Ame. Well no harm done, it wouldn't hurt form him to see his objective.

Though looking at the toad to her left she can't help but wonder how long it will be for Jiraiya to confront them. He likely won't say it in front of the other Kage, he may have been a boisterous man, but he was a master spy for a reason. She'd consider it later, for now the matches were starting, and she had to admit she was a little curious about the Hyuuga that Naruko seemed to care about.

* * *

The stadium was buzzing, there were so many faces Naruko found it almost overwhelming. The first match would be starting soon, and the redhead couldn't help but be excited to watch her girlfriends match. She and the other participants were currently gathered down on the floor of the arena as the opening ceremony was happening. Naruko found it odd that the villagers were looking in her direction with any kind of positive attitude. She knew objectively they were looking at her but just the contestants in general, but she had to admit, she didn't hate the lack of glares. Looking at Sasuke she sees his hairs grown out a bit and he's traded in his high collared blue shirt for a brown one. She doesn't really think browns his color but given the dirt floor of the arena it's probably for stealth.

Looking towards Fuu she can see the green haired girl hasn't changed at all in the past month. Now that she thinks about it, it's a bit weird that she seen the other girl at all during the month. It's not like she saw her often, but she had been expecting her to try and spend more time with the redhead during the course of the month.

Her attention was drawn to the proctor, this time it was a man who seemed pretty intent on chewing on his senbon. He asked the other competitors to head up to the stands while Hina-chan and Neji remain.

"Good luck Hina-chan."

"Thanks Naru-chan, this should be quick." Naruko smiles at that, she loves how confident her girlfriend has become since they were children.

Hinata watches as her girlfriend turns and leaves, she has to resist staring at her ass, no need to be thinking about how amazing it is while fighting Neji. She flicks her eyes over to the boy in question. She had no doubt in her mind that she would defeat him. He was strong, of that there is no doubt, but he was far to arrogant for his own good. He would likely underestimate her because he perceives her as a failure. Oh and her lack of a hand.

She moves to stand opposite of him as the proctor calls for them to ready themselves. The two Hyuuga's simultaneously activate their Byakugan.

"Begin!" The proctor calls out while quickly jumping back. He had already explained the rules during the opening ceremony so there was no reason to before the fight. Plus they hadn't changed from the preliminaries.

Neji rushes forward he was aiming for the quick victory with a decisive Jyuken strike towards her functioning arm. She slaps it aside and lashes out with her own Jyuken style towards his ribs. He jumps out of the way easy enough. "You should surrender Hinata-sama. It is fate for you to lose here today. Please save the clan from further embarrassment."

"The only embarrassment to the clan is you Neji-niisan. You proclaim fate as having been decided yet you fail to see how you struggle against it." The boy snarls and rushes forward once more. He quickly tries to overwhelm her with the use of both his hands, but she is able to block his strikes easily.

The two broke apart again and this time Hinata rushed forward. She lashes out with a kick towards his temple. She certainly doesn't hope to kill him, but she won't hold back here. She has to win this so she will. Not even family will stand in the way here. Plus holding back would be an insult to his skill, even if he was too arrogant for his own good. Of course Hinata wasn't arrogant, not in the slightest.

He blocks her kick and lashes out with a strike towards her heart. Good he's not holding back. She slaps it aside with her handless arm. She counters simultaneously with her own strike. It lands on his shoulder of his right arm. It quickly falls limp. He jumps back and strikes his own disabled tenketsu. He winces but regains use in the arm. "Your attacks are meaningless against me Hinata-sama. Without both hands you'll never be able to make me lose control of my body." He on the other hand, no pun intended, would only have to disable one arm and she would lose the ability to undue his attacks.

"Perhaps, but I have no doubt that I will disable you long before you even harm me."

"Is that the arrogance of the main branch?"

"No, it's the resolution of a kunoichi." They both were ignoring the fact that she could win instantly and wouldn't suffer any punishment, because using the curse seal was well within her grasp and the rules.

"Then I will show you why your resolution will fail." He lunges forward once more and attempts to strike her. Once again she deflects him. "You are in my range of divination." He knew he had the win here. There is no way she could block all 64 strikes.

"I'm impressed you've learned a main branch technique with no aid." She was still blocking his strikes as he hadn't hit the blistering speeds yet. "I'll show you why it's not infallible. **Kaiten**!" She quickly launches him away from her with a spin of the chakra sphere. It was easily her strongest counter to the **Hakke Rokujūyon Shō** (Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms), as it's range exceeds the other technique by a decent amount. Not to mention the other technique requires the user to stand in place.

Neji lands looking a bit battered from the **Kaiten.** As it turns out the extreme speed in the rotation still hurts those hit by it. That much had always been obvious while watching Naru-chan fight. Hinata gives Neji little time to rest as she rushes forward and lands a devastating kick to his shoulder. He cries out in pain and before he can retreat she strikes his other shoulder, disabling both arms. He finally manages to get away and struggles to stand as his arms hang limp.

"Look at yourself Neji-niisan. You mock me for my continuing to be a ninja despite missing a hand, yet here you stand trying to fight despite no longer being able to use either of them. You claim fate has determined your victory yet you stand here on the brink of loss. You claim me a failure, yet despite not having a right hand I have still disabled you. So tell me where is fate now?"

"Shut up! I can't lose to you, not after my father was sacrificed for your ineptitude!"

"You would call a child getting captured by a jonin an ineptitude?"

"You could have lost your father for your mistake, but instead the main branch had to be protected, and I had to lose mine! Fate decreed that my father would die and so it happened. Fate granted me the ability to be a prodigy like no other! Fate has already declared me the victor. Because I am strong and the strong will always win!"

"The strong do always win. But Neji-niisan, you are weak. You are still an angry child over the loss of his father. I'm sorry that Hizashi-Ojisan had to die, but I had no ability to make that choice. Perhaps you will understand that one day, and realize you still have a family who loves you." She rushes forward and knocks him out before he can react. One can hope he will realize his folly one day.

"Victor Hyuuga Hinata!" The crow roars in applause. It helps that she was slated as the underdog given her handicap and younger age. Many had lost out in betting, but it's still exciting to see an underdog have such a decisive victory. Hinata swiftly heads up to the competitors box, she had a girlfriend to spend time with. The medics quickly sweep in and take Neji to be treated. As Hinata walked towards the competitors box she pointed ignored the cry of youth from Neji's green clad teammate. She doesn't ignore the rush of wind as the boy speeds past her and appears on the arena floor. He certainly fast, easily able to match Naru-chan if she had to guess.

* * *

Konan had to admit, the girl was impressive. It's a shame Utakata had to die only to cripple her. Though even then it didn't seem to have done much to deter her from growing stronger. The Kage seemed just as impressed by her performance in the first match. Konan wouldn't be surprised if she gets the promotion for that match alone, but she still had at least one more to go and more attempts to lock down the promotion. Looking down at the new participants she finds herself not caring much, neither of these two were associated with her target in any meaningful way. Konan briefly wonders how Onoki would react if his granddaughter died in the chunin exam finals. Would he start a new war, despite having known the risks? Probably not. The man was many things, but foolish was not one of them.

Jiraiya looked on proudly, despite the fact that Hinata hadn't used any of what he taught her (and she likely wouldn't use it at all for the exams), but she had still become his pupil and he was proud. The Hokage seemed pleased by her win, the heiress of a notable clan winning versus a branch member of the same clan bodes well for the future of Konoha after all.

The other Kage watched warily, they may not act like it but all of them knew this was a chance to gain intel on the other villages future shinobi forces. Though none of them had personal investments in the match as it was only Konoha.

* * *

"Good Job Hina-chan! I knew you could do it!" Naruko had immediately greeted her girlfriend with a hug and a passionate kiss. What can she say, it's pretty hot when her girlfriend is being a bad ass. Plus she has to make up for the month of lost time. They have both agreed to train as much as possible over the course of the month, but that doesn't mean that Naruko had to like being away from the lavender themed girl.

"Man you have no idea what a months break from that does for the mind."

"Glad to see you too Sasuke."

"Hey I'm glad to see you, I'm just not glad to see the flirting. Congrats on the win by the way."

"You're next on the team, try not to be the only member of the team to not win the first match."

"You're assuming Naruko is just going to win?"

"She's up against Ino of course she's going to win. You are up against Fuu and will probably get your ass kicked."

Speak of the devil and she shall appear. "Thanks for the vote of Confidence Hinata-chan! I'm glad my girlfriends wife thinks so much of me."

"She's not your girlfriend." Hinata didn't bother rejecting the wife claim, it was basically true. Well not entirely, "Also she's my wife not the other way around."

"How do you know, you haven't seen her in a month?" Naruko had told her, as the two had been talking while watching Hinata's match.

"Naruko did you two start dating?"

"Nope." The redhead responds, popping the 'p.'

"Then Fuu, my previous statement stands." Hinata idly wonders just when she got used to this nonsense.

The three girls (and Sasuke) ended their conversation as a loud crash rings through out the arena. They had completely forgotten about the ongoing fight. Looking down they can see Kurotsuchi embedded in a wall while Lee stands with an outstretched fist. So then the crash was her impacting the wall? Damn Lee is strong. They're a little surprised to see the Iwa kunoichi get up, but they really shouldn't be, Iwa nin are known for being tough as well, stone. She seems to wince as she removes herself from the wall but other than that looks fit to continue.

Lee let's out a cry of excitement as his opponent shifts back into a fighting stance. Though this time as he rockets forward the Kunoichi flies through several hand seals and spits a glob of lava at him. Well that's dangerous, it's probably lethal just to come in contact with it. Still Lee dodges easily and Naruko realizes he doesn't have his weights on. It's not like she was doing much different, she had her resistance seals on right now, but planned on taking them off during Sasuke and Fuu's match.

The Kunoichi seeing him approach casts some kind of Doton Jutsu and burrows into the earth. Lee seeing her disappear quickly jumps back not wanting to be caught in a trap. He makes a beeline for the trees, fully intending to take higher ground. That plan comes crashing down when Kurotsuchi pops out of the ground, apparently much faster while traveling through it and not only spits another glob at him but destroys most of the trees he had planned on using.

Lee dodges once more but the cover of the trees was completely destroyed. It was actually pretty smart of the Iwa Kunoichi. She likely knows stealth tactics are something she's weak against, so she removed the option in it's entirety. She had set the playing field to her advantage for all of the coming matches, and to the disadvantage of anyone trying to use stealth in their own match. Lee once more let's out a cry of the Youth, and charges her. This time she makes an earth wall and let's out a spray of lava in either direction of the wall.

Not to be deterred Lee jumps over the wall but Kurotsuchi just smirks and fires some weird kind of slag at him. It sticks and locks up his movements as it immediately hardens. Seeing no other choice the Konoha genin opens up the first three gates and breaks the hardened stone. Now much faster he rushes the girl and once more she dives underground. Seeing no other option, as he knows he's on a time limit now, he starts to attack the ground wildly, hoping to hit her in the process.

He fails to find her as she secretly emerges in the mostly destroyed treeline. She waits things out for several minutes, secretly watching as he tires himself out before appearing and attacking again, his gates having just faded as he exhausts his chakra. A rock slams into his ribs and he's not to the ground his breathing unsteady. Still he tries to stand, but that's all he manages. The proctor see's he's unconscious but still standing and calls the match.

"Victor Kamizuru Kurotsuchi!" The crowd erupts into a mix of boos and cheers. Konoha wasn't pleased to see one of their ninja being defeated by their rivals, but the foreigners in the crowd had been treated to quite an exciting match. Kurotsuchi just smirks and walks off to the competitors box, knowing full well that no one from Konoha could ever beat her. Lee is quickly taken by the medics to have his likely damaged muscles repaired.

In the stands Gai looks on proudly, his student may not have won, but he tried his best and showed the world he can still be an excellent ninja with his handicap. Funny how the first two Konoha ninja of the day had some handicap.

* * *

Onoki was smug as shit. Hiruzen felt a distinct urge to rip off the old bastards nose and feed it to him. Of course, Onoki was Hiruzen's second longest rival so it should be no surprise that the fence sitter would be smug about his granddaughter winning over a Konoha nin. Well if nothing else Hiruzen was sure that the Hyuuga heiress would win against her. He had reports on her progress from Kurenai and knew full well the girl was easily one of his strongest genin, and likely would be one of his strongest chunin by the end of the exam.

He doesn't think he's going to give Lee the promotion here, even if the boy did put up a good fight and tried to use some tactics, one more year and the boy should have it though. He had to admit, letting Gai take a child that can't use chakra (beyond tree and water walking) under his wing was not a bad idea with results like these. Looking down Hiruzen couldn't help but be excited for the next match, it was always a delight to see a Nara in action and against the Kazekage's oldest daughter it should be quite exciting as well.

Mei Terumi was curious, the girl had the same kekkei genkai as her, and as far as she knew that was a kekkei genkai unique to the Terumi clan. Which means a member either ran off and married into the Tsuchikage's family, or a member was stolen and used to make the clan start in Iwa. She'd have to look into the family records. Stealing a kekkei genkai is a huge crime, even if it's something most villages have tried at one point or another. It was something wars have been started over, though she has no intention of starting a war over it, she'd likely just have the girl quietly assassinated.

* * *

Team 7 was impressed. Lee had put on an excellent display. Though Kurotsuchi would be someone to watch out for in the second match. The last thing they need is for her to melt Hinata's other hand. Hinata was already planning out how to deal with the girl, but it would certainly be difficult.

They collectively watch in amusement as Ino shoves Shikamaru down into the arena for his match against Temari. It should be interesting, Shikamaru was lazy to an almost religious degree, but he was easily one of the smartest people in the village.

"I've got money on Temari."

"I didn't know you were the gambling type Hinata. But I'll take that bet. 500 ryo on Shikamaru."

"Your on Sasuke."

"Can I get in on this bet?"

"Depends what you want to bet."

"I'll bet you Naruko-chan's virginity."

"Fuu you can't just bet my virginity, bet your own." The green haired girl pouts.

"What would you do if Hinata-chan agreed?"

"She wouldn't agree. At least I hope not." Hina-chan had no reason to agree, she basically only had to ask if she wanted the redheads virginity. So there would be nothing to gain from that bet. Of course none of this even touches on the fact that they would be treating her like an object, which she has found is starting to get to her as time goes on. Naruko doesn't like it. She doesn't mind her girlfriend being a possessive, she had long grown used to it, and even appreciated it a little, but the saying things like she outright belongs to her is a little much.

"Yeah that's not happening, if you want to bet use something else." Fuu pouts once more but drops the issue. Hinata would never offer up Naru-chan's virginity to another. "Take Sasuke's or something, he needs to make more Uchiha anyways."

"Sasuke may be feminine but I'm still not into guys."

"Fair point. Sorry Sasuke looks like your crush will go unrequited."

"I don't have a crush on Fuu."

"Do you have a crush on anyone?" She had never really looked at his love life, but he was her friend and teammate. So Hinata had to admit, she was curious.

"Nope, as it stands I'm not really into any of the girls here in Konoha." They were all too fake for his tastes. He was to well known as the last Uchiha here in Konoha. Well he's in no rush, he has no intention to fall in love like it's going out of style. His teammates and Fuu seemed to beg to differ about how fast is reasonable to fall in love. Though to be fair Naruko and Hinata had known each other since they were five or something like that. He turns his attention to the arena as he tunes out his teammates bantering and flirting with Fuu. At least the matches were a good distraction from them.

Shikamaru was annoyed. He had no time to think and Ino had to push him down quickly rather than giving him time to plan. He couldn't even hide in the trees to come up with a strategy. All he was doing at the moment was dodging blades of wind the Kunoichi was launching at him. Well he didn't have to sit still just to plan, Asuma had seen to that after he suddenly changed his demeanor, but it still helped him think. He was tempted to just surrender, but his mother would be such a drag if he did that. Not to mention Ino, oh god she would be so annoying.

Alright he has a plan, though if it fails it won't work again. He rushes forward intent on engaging in a bout of Taijutsu. He wasn't particularly good at it, but he wasn't bad either. Hopefully he could fool her long enough for her to think that she only needs to gain a little distance. As he goes he decides to pull out a kunai, it would help make the plan go smoother. She seems to buy his act and strikes back at him with the fan. He grunts as he deflects it with the kunai. He moves quickly darting another hand into his kunai pouch to pull out a second one, though this one had a Fuinjutsu tag inscribed on the hilt, hidden under his hand.

They continue to engage in a rather mediocre bout of close combat before she knocks his second kunai behind him. He quickly pulses his chakra and the Fuinjutsu activates. A bright flash erupts from it, though not bright enough to wipe away his shadow, and he tosses his first kunai into the air and quickly flies through the hand signs for his families signature jutsu. He smirks as he feels it connect. " **Kagemane no Jutsu** (Shadow Possession Technique) success." He quickly makes an action to drop the fan and then reaches out his hand. Making the motion to catch a kunai.

But he wasn't the one to catch it, rather the girl across from him did. He moves so she holds it against her neck. "Surrender." The girl sighs and calls out.

"I surrender." The boy nods and ends the Jutsu.

"Victor Nara Shikamaru!" Shikamaru shrugs and walks off. He was a little drained and would likely forfeit in his next match, as Sasuke would likely be too much for him to handle, and if the green haired girl beats him then she would definitely be too much.

Temari looks on annoyed. He so casually defeated her and didn't even seem happy about it. Still it was a smart tactic and she had to give him credit for his craftiness. As she wasn't injured she was allowed to return to the competitors box, or to the general audience if she so chose. She decides to go to the competitors box, not wanting to deal with the teasing she would no doubt face from Kankuro for losing to a rookie three years her junior.

The crowd was cheering pretty wildly, it was mostly made up of citizens of Konoha and fire country so of course they were excited to see Konoha win, even if it was versus their allies.

* * *

Raza was pissed. All three of his children had failed miserably. Two of them hadn't even made it to the finals and the one that had ended up losing in the first round. It was disgraceful. He had sent them so they could win and show of Suna's strength, not so they could lose and embarrass the village. He's going to raise hell when they get home. But for now he is going to keep up the cold visage he is so well known for.

Hiruzen on the other hand was quite pleased. The Nara had put on an excellent showing despite being at a disadvantage in both terrain and experience. He made the right choice by punishing his son the way he did. Yes it was another sacrifice, but it was worth the results if the rookies were going to put on as good a showing as they were.

The other Kage were mostly ambivalent towards the match. Onoki was displeased Konoha had won, but outside of that they had merely mentally noted the strengths and weaknesses of the next generation.

Konan was feeling eager, Fuu was up next and she was up against one of Naruko's teammates. This would be an exciting match, as it was one of the few she was actually invested in. She had no doubt Fuu would win, those were her orders after all and that girl was an excellent kunoichi, so she was sure the orders would be followed through.

* * *

"You ready Sasuke?"

"As ready as I'm gonna be."

"Good enough. What about you Fuu?"

"Sorry if I kick your teammates ass."

"Go fuck yourself Fuu."

"I'd rather fuck the pretty little redhead right next to me."

"You could at least pretend you don't want to fuck my girlfriends brains out."

"Yeah but why would I do that, when I can let her know how hot she is? Which by the way, is very hot."

"I know, I'm dating her, she's gorgeous. Whatever just go fight Sasuke." Fuu shrugs and jumps down into the arena. "So do you think you have a shot at winning?"

"Probably not, she isn't as strong as Kurenai-sensei, but she still managed to hold her own against for a while, and will probably kick my ass. But as the proctor said, becoming a chunin isn't determined off of sheer victory."

"So do you have a plan?"

"Kind of, it's hard to plan when she's shown so little."

"Fair enough, well good luck out there. We'll be cheering you on."

"Yeah you can do it Sasuke, Team 7 is unstoppable."

"Thanks you two." With that he heads down into the arena for his match.

"So do you think he can win?"

"Not a chance Naru-chan." They both knew Fuu was too strong for any of them at the moment.

"Well it should still be interesting, Sasuke is definitely going to put up a good fight." He was too tenacious to do anything less. They're distracted from their current conversation as the Kiri nin approaches them, Haku if they recall correctly.

"You two seem to know her from before the exams, why are you so confident she'll win?"

"She's a ringer." Hinata responds simply.

He raises an eyebrow. "Oh, how so?"

"She can go toe to toe with Jonin, she's definitely not what a genin should be. Unless Ame just has crazy high standards." Naruko decided not to mention the fact that she was also a missing nin from Taki, as she originally wore their forehead protector.

"I'll have to watch out for her then." Seeing Haku break the ice Samui who had been calmly watching the other matches until now approaches.

"You put up a good fight earlier, it was pretty cool." She says towards Hinata. She did love her lovers to be strong, and Hinata was an appealing specimen.

"Thanks, you have the last match right?" Samui nods. "That should be an interesting match."

"I'll win, Kumo is stronger than Iwa so I won't lose to that guy." She stated it as a fact, fully confident in her ability to win versus everyone here.

"We'll have to wait and see, there are still two matches until yours begins." Counting Sasuke and Naru-chan of course. Speaking of Sasuke Hinata turns her attention back down to the arena as his match is about to start.

Naruko does much the same, but feels a shiver run up her spine. Something deep within her is telling her that something horrible is going to happen soon. She doesn't know why. She can't even tell if the instinct is her own or if Kaguya is trying to send her a message for some reason, all she knows is it feels like something bad will happen. Maybe she should enter Sage Mode, and see if any chakra feels wrong. Looking around she curses. She doesn't want to miss Sasuke's match, but she doesn't want to let the others around her know that she can use a sensory technique.

With an internal curse she ignores her instincts and doesn't activate Sage Mode. Maybe it's nothing.

* * *

A/N I'm back! Yes that's right my hiatus has officially ended now that I'm done with finals! It's been a long three weeks. I think the hiatus was actually good for me. My vigor for writing this story has returned in full and hopefully that means more consistent updates for all of you. Anyways what did you think of the chapter? You'll have to wait and find out just what they really learned during the month of training. What did you think of Naruko's new outfit? I'm not to great when it comes to fashion, not gonna lie. But I think it looks pretty good. How were the fights? I like to think they were some of my best fights yet, even if they were a little short. All in all I'm really pleased with this chapter and I hope you all are as well.

As a reminder I still have a poll going on for what arcs you want to see happen, that will be closing with the end of the chunin exams. Obviously they are going to be subject to change, so don't expect faithful recreations of the original arcs/movies. Anyways I'm glad to be back and I hope you all are too.

CM 12/16/18


	16. The Red Lily of Konoha

If the stadium hadn't been charged with energy before, it certainly was now. How could it not be? Uchiha Sasuke, the last of the Uchiha clan and hometown favorite, was about to go up against the only ninja from Ame, a country that had been locked in isolation for the past 17 years. Bets were made, the majority of which were on Sasuke, and Konoha was ready for a decisive win. How could anyone beat the seemingly prodigious last Uchiha?

In the stands Kurenai looked down at her student with pride, she's immensely proud of all of them, and even if Sasuke doesn't win this (for she knows just how strong Fuu really is) she would be glad to be called his sensei. She slides an eye of to Kakashi. The man hadn't told her what he had taught Sasuke over the course of the past month, but he was anything but lazy so she knew he will have kept his word.

The roar of the excited crowd slowly dims as the proctor raises his hand into the air. Everyone was watching with baited breath. He dropped his hand and a single word rang throughout the stadium. "Begin!"

Fuu wasted no time dashing forward towards Sasuke. He may have been a friend but she will not hold back on him. Sasuke had already long since activated his Sharingan and was prepared for it before she even started moving. He smacks his hand to the side deflecting her punch just as it arrives. He was much slower than her, though he was still quite fast (he was fairly certain he was one of the fastest competitors). The only way he'll be able to handle her is to see where the attacks are coming from and deflect them before they even arrive. Of course she would likely pick up on this. The girl may act stupid and perverse but she was intelligent. She took the art of deception very seriously it would seem.

He had grown used to the strain of his Sharingan over the past month, Kakashi had him leave it on almost constantly during the month. So now he could maintain it full time. Though he still couldn't use his Mangekyo very well, he hadn't told Kakashi he had it, and had only trained it in his own free time. The man was a mystery and despite the fact that he had been training him Sasuke was not quick to trust him. Interestingly the man seemed pleased by this fact rather than annoyed or disappointed.

Sasuke didn't have much more time to ponder his training as he once more had to deflect an attack from Fuu. She was strong and fast. If he didn't have Naruko as his teammate he never would have been able to handle someone like this.

She jumps back and tosses a bottle of water into the air. He knows what she's trying to do and rushes forward, pulling out a kunai as he does so. He reaches her before the bottle falls and forces her to back away. He saw her use that water sword back in Wave and he wasn't about to let her use it here. Though if he does that would certainly be a useful Jutsu to copy. Still letting her get a sword is not an advantage he wants to give just for the sake of one Jutsu.

She smirks as he forces her away and he doesn't have a moment to consider as the bottle mpacts the ground. It explodes in a shower of, is that alcohol? Why would she toss out pure alcohol? It clicks a second later. It had splashes on his hands and face, making Katon more difficult to use. She had gimped his ability to use Katon Jutsu, or he risks burning himself. He had just been thinking about how she uses the art of deception and then fell into a trap, how embarrassing.

It should be fine, it's not like he only knows Katon Jutsu, but it certainly makes things harder. And against a jonin level opponent, that is the last thing he wants. He isn't left with much time to ponder as the green haired girl rushes towards him once again. She throws a powerful Haymaker which he ducks under. He lashes out with a sweeping kick. She jumps over the kick and he launches himself off his hands attempting to do a drop kick on her while she can't move in the air.

She grabs onto his legs and flips herself over onto the ground. Delivering a powerful elbow drop to his sternum sending him crashing into the ground. He coughs as the wind is forced from him. He's going to be feeling that for the next several days, well not really. He quickly gets away from her and performs the **Shōsen Jutsu** (Mystical Palm Technique) on his stomach. He sighs in relief as the healing chakra floods his system and immediately eases the bruise. He doesn't fully heal himself as he's forced to cut it short from her resumed onslaught. He's more prepared this time and as she approaches he flies through several hand signs. Nothing seems to happen and he externally curses. "Of course that Jutsu failed."

"Sucks to be you Sasuke." She was on top of him now and threw her fist forward. Only to feel her fingers snap out of places as she punches what amounts to a steel wall. The air seems to ripple in front of Sasuke as a seal glows on his shirt. The ink was made from his blood, in this manner only he could use it, and blended into his brown shirt much better than it would have on his previous blue one. A barrier pulses only barely visible around the contact point of Fuu's fist.

"You're not the only one who can use deception Fuu." This barrier was something he had worked on with Jiraiya, but only managed to perfect during his month of training with Kakashi. He had hoped to save it for later, but there won't be a later if he holds back against Fuu.

"I'll admit you got me good Sasuke." She backs up, holding her injured fingers. She snaps them back into place and says. "Let's see how much force it can take." Without even making a handsign she performs a Jutsu he's never seen before " **Soto Kokakku no Jutsu** (Exoskeleton Technique)" Her skin suddenly has lines making a net like pattern across it and seems to have taken on an almost blue hue. She punches the wall again and this time he get's pushed back from the force. That doesn't bode well for him.

She doesn't let up as she continues to punch forward and soon he finds himself up against the wall, literally. She doesn't stop pounding on the barrier and soon the worse happens. It breaks and her fist drives into his elbow breaking it. He let's out a cry of pain, he quickly tries to use a **Kawarimi no Jutsu** (Substitution Technique) but she grabs a hold of him and slams him into the ground. He let's a pained cough and sees blood come out, great he's bleeding internally now. She says. "Give up while you still can."

He turns to look at her, his eyes spinning into the Mangekyo, but she has none of it, she quickly breaks his other arm and he, being the rookie that he is, squints his eyes closed to stop the pain. "I don't want to cripple you. I consider you a friend of mine. So just give up already!" He wrenches his eyes open, noticing an odd orange glow around her. She quickly realizes he's not giving up. She sighs and with a grimace picks him up by the back of the head and slams him face first into the ground. If the sickening crack is anything to go by, then his nose is broken. Or maybe his jaw.

His cries of agony, as she repeatedly slams him face first into the ground, ring throughout the stadium. The civilians cringe in their seats as they watch the last Uchiha brutally being attacked. Seeing the way this fight is going the proctor steps in. "That's enough, I'm calling the match."

"No!" He couldn't lose like this. He was being humiliated. All that hard work, what was it all for if he couldn't even handle this much. He was prepared to lose, but she was going out of her way to show the world his weakness. His worthlessness as the Uchiha not even worth killing. Dammit, it wasn't fair! "Don't you dare end this match like this." He couldn't give up, his teammates needed someone strong to help them live freely. He needed to be strong to kill Itachi, and to protect them. How could he ever look them in the eye if he lost like this?!

"I'm sorry kid, it's over. Fuu is the victor of this match! Medics!" The Uchiha was helpless to stop it as the medics carried him off, Fuu shooting him a look of remorse. He really was her friend, but she had a mission. And above all else she was loyal to Ame.

There were no applause or boos from the audience. Only shocked silence, it perhaps spoke louder than any cheers ever could. Was this the brutality of the ninja world? One of the genin Konoha had been most proud of had been destroyed by what amounts to some nobody.

* * *

Hiruzen was not amused. He of course was not happy to see one of his own ninja so thoroughly beaten. It had become obvious to him and likely would be to the other Kage as well. That is that girl Fuu was no genin. Sure she might have the rank, but she was obviously not. He wouldn't be surprised if Ame used their isolation to demote her just for this chunin exam, none of the other nations would be able to argue.

He wouldn't say anything for now. Because even if she was a ringer, it would make him look weak in front of the other leaders if he argued about it now. He'd have to let it sit for now. And that perhaps is what annoyed him the most. His genin were being harmed and he could do nothing about it at the moment.

Konan was ambivalent. Fuu had certainly come a long way under the blue haired woman's tutelage. Still things went as planned. Though she'd have to work on Fuu's abilities if she had to rely on that Jutsu so early into the exams. Well their plans hadn't been derailed, so she looks forward to seeing how things will be going soon.

* * *

The genin were silent, much like the rest of the crowd. Though if the way the rails were warping under Naruko's grip were anything to go by, then they weren't happy. Because if Naruko wasn't happy than neither was her girlfriend. And Naruko was very obviously unhappy.

They understood that it was a match, and that she had given him a chance to surrender. Fuu and Sasuke were both friends of theirs, but she had been so brutal about it. It was hard to watch. Naruko didn't have time to ponder it as she gives her girlfriend a quick, shaky hug before jumping down. Sasuke was her best friend, and watching him get torn apart was hard. Perhaps the worst part for Naruko is that the feeling of something bad happening soon hadn't gone away afterwords. No whatever it is, it only seems to get worse. So if it hadn't been Sasuke's humiliation she was feeling what was it?

Hinata didn't say anything as her girlfriend went down. She was sure Naruko would win. But that means in the second round Naruko will have to fight Fuu. Hinata's stomach was tying itself in knots at the thought. She was fairly certain Naruko and Sasuke were about even in strength at the moment, so if Sasuke got so brutalized then wouldn't Naruko as well?

"Hey Hinata-chan why the long face?" Fuu had just returned to the competitors box cheery as ever.

"I'm worried about Sasuke."

"He should be fine, I broke a lot of bones, but Konoha has a great med nin program. You should know that. None of that damage should be permanent."

"That's good. . . Hey Fuu."

"Yeah?"

"Why did you suddenly start bashing his face in at the end?"

"Oh I didn't want him to use that fancy new eye of his."

Hinata nods at that, the Mangekyo was a powerful tool, one that they don't even know the limits of. . . Wait a second. How did she know about the Mangekyo? It's supposed to be an Uchiha secret so the only people who should know is Sasuke and Itachi, obviously Team 7 too. So how did Fuu know? They didn't mention it to her during the preliminaries.

"How di-"

"Oh Look Naruko-chan's match is starting!" Fuu says excitedly. Hinata wonders if the girl cut her off intentionally, but she's not wrong. Naru-chan's match was just called to start.

* * *

Naruko stood across from Ino, wondering if this will actually be a difficult match. Well no sense wasting time. The moment the proctor raised his arm Naruko readied herself to dash forward. With a quick pulse of chakra she removed her resistance seals. She's likely not going to need Sage Mode for this fight, it's only Ino after all. The proctors hand falls and Naruko immediately rushes forward. Ino was prepared for that much and immediately backed away.

The blonde had come a long way from the academy, but Naruko was always a powerhouse when it came to combat, and that had only become more true in the time since the academy. She quickly pulses her chakra as she feels a Genjutsu start to take hold. She was a master of the mind (or rather a master of the mind in training) and wasn't going to fall for a Genjutsu that easily. She winces as she throws a block up against Naruko's kick. The kick was strong enough to send her skidding backwards a few feet. Damn that girl was a freak with how strong she was.

Ino had realized quickly that she was never going to win a Taijutsu bout. Her only hope was to use her clans signature Jutsu and make Naruko forfeit. This was her first mistake. She continued to try and stall Naruko for as long as possible. She performs a quick substitution Jutsu with a log in the destroyed forest in the arena. Naruko didn't take long to arrive but Ino had already prepared the Jutsu by the time she did. The moment she came into view Ino fired it off. This was her second mistake.

The Jutsu landed successfully and both girls drop to the ground unconscious. The proctor being familiar with the **Shintenshin no Jutsu** (Mind Body Transfer Technique) doesn't call the match as a double knockout. He knows one of them will get up in a few moments anyways.

* * *

Ino found herself in some kind of weird temple, lit only by candlelight. It was one long corridor that seemed to stretch almost endlessly. This was weird, her technique isn't meant to put her into someones mindscape. Not only that but this was a weirdly developed mindscape, most of the time they are just an empty white space that has a scroll containing the users memories. She'd only seen mindscapes like this in her own clan members. Plus the only time this technique pulls people into the owners mindscape is when they have already set up barriers against mind techniques. Had Naruko somehow done so?

Knowing time passes slower in the mind Ino decides to explore. If she's here then Naruko is too, somewhere. Knocking her out here would do the same as knocking her out in the real world, so there is no harm in exploring. This was her third mistake. Despite the fact that the hallway seemed to continue forever she had somehow reached the end, looking back it continues to stretch on, yet she had only been walking for what felt like a few seconds.

She stood before an alter, sitting at the alter was a tall woman with white hair and horns. She was chained to the floor. To the woman's left and right were statues of a tree and the demon that attacked the village respectively. Interestingly both of these statues were chained to the floor as well, as though they were living.

Looking at this woman Ino wonders if this is Naruko's mental representation of herself. She couldn't imagine any other reason another person would be here. Or is the woman some kind of demon, she certainly has the horns.

The woman opens both of her elegant eyes and Ino is surprised to see a pair of Byakugan eyes staring back at her. "You do not belong here girl. Leave while you have the chance.

"Who are you?"

"Are you daft? I told you to leave, not to question me."

"And why should I take orders from you?"

"Because you will die if you don't. It's already starting again."

Ino watched as the womans skin slowly started to turn to stone. She hadn't noticed it before but her shadow had been split onto the two statues. Now it seemed to be gathering onto the demon. "What's happening to you?"

"It's too late now, you better pray Kagura can save you." Ino was confused. She couldn't ask more questions as the woman turned completely to stone, looking every bit as elegant as she did before. Ino turns to leave only to hear a creak. She turns back and sees the statue of the demon was shifting now. It's head seemed to snap towards her, and she feels her pulse quicken. She quickly turns to leave but a gate slams down in front of her. The space between the bars is too thin for her to slip through, despite having the slim figure she's so proud of. The statue creaks again and she, much to her regret turns back to it. This was her final mistake.

The stone had started to flake off and it snapped a single horrible eye open. It's eye was red and ringed with tomoe. Ino felt the terror begin to take root into her psyche. Now it's mouth has snapped open and it let's out a single dreadful roar. It seemed to shift and suddenly it had swapped places with the womans statue. It continued to creak and come alive. It started to rattle against it's chains and all at once they snapped. It lunged at her and she screamed desperate now to fit through the bars. It grabs a hold of her foot and she notices that both it and the room seem to be growing. The candles flicker out and the once great temple suddenly falls into decay. It starts to pull her away from the bars. She desperately clings to them. Her grip slips and she starts to be pulled away.

Before she can a pale hand grabs her from the other side of the bars. "Ino you shouldn't be here."

"Naruko what the fuck is up with your mind!?"

"Now's not the time for this. Cancel your Jutsu now!"

"Why don't you just call this thing off! It's your mind!"

"It's a resident but it's no part of my mind." Ino looks at her, was this thing some kind of split personality?

Naruko was pointedly not looking at it. She remembers just seeing the eye from her chakra network. She would never dare look at this monster. Though this was the first time that she was in the seal while it has been in control. She doesn't like it, she much prefers Kaguya's presence. "Did you look in it's eye?"

"Y-yeah?" Ino answers hesitantly, not sure why she's being asked.

"Dammit, that means it's got a grip on your emotions. Remember back when I unlocked my chakra, how terrified I was?"

"I had thought you were just overloaded from too much chakra?" Ino was growing increasingly uncomfortable as the monster and Naruko did tug of war with her body. It let out an angered roar at being denied it's meal.

"No, it was from seeing this thing's eye." So this thing has been in Naruko's mind since they were second year academy students? How fucked was the redheads life that it would produce the monster that destroyed Konoha. Or maybe, the villagers called her the demon for a reason, right? So then was this her true form?

"So what do I do?"

"End your technique and leave."

"I need both hands to do so." Naruko looked at her and sighed. Ino had a bad feeling.

"Then you'll have to be fast."

"Don't do it."

"We have no choice. Ready?"

"No."

"Good luck. I'm sorry." Naruko says as she releases the blonde. Ino screams and try's to make the hand signs of her clans Jutsu. She curses as her hand's shake in terror and she misses a hand sign having to start over. She doesn't get to finish as it pulls her into it's maw and snaps it closed. She feels her bones snap and crack as it chews on her, engulfing her in the sea of it's hatred and malice. She does the only thing she can, she screams.

* * *

It had only been a few seconds on the outside. They were standing, then they were unconscious, and then the Yamanaka heiress started screaming and thrashing. Naruko got up and ran over to check on Ino. She may not have been her friend, but she didn't deserve that. The girl was out of it. The proctor quickly steps in and calls the match in Naruko's favor.

"Yamanaka Ino is unable to continue. Uzumaki Naruko wins! Medics!" The medics rushed out and tried to get the heiress onto a stretcher. She's thrashing to much and they are forced to sedate her. Once more the crowd is silent as they look down at the combatants. The silence is broken by a single 'boo' and a bottle being thrown into the arena. It smashes against the redheads temple and shatters, spilling alcohol all over her and cutting her face open. That seemed to start it as suddenly it seemed like everyone in the crowd was booing her and throwing things at her. She could only slowly walk back to the competitors box, the guilt gnawing away at her. Ino wasn't her friend but no one deserves to have been subjected to that. The crowd didn't even know what happened, they just know that Naruko had caused some kind of trauma to an heiress. They likely wouldn't be throwing trash at her if they knew the truth of what happened. They would probably be throwing kunai and shuriken to 'kill the demon' if they knew.

* * *

Konan looked on curiously, she hadn't been expecting that. But it would certainly aid in their plans. Most of the Kage were looking down with the same expression she wore. They all knew about the Yamanaka Jutsu to some degree, and to cause a reaction like that must have been something terrible. Finally A speaks.

"Is that Uzumaki Kushina's daughter?" He remembered the woman well, and the girl was her spitting image.

Before Hiruzen can answer in the negative Konan interjects. "It is."

"I see." A looked at the young girl, slowly walking through the hail of trash, again. So this was also the Yondaime Hokage's daughter then. He only knew about the two because he had been the mans rival, so of course he made sure to find out the two had been married. Especially since he had known his village attempted to kidnap Kushina when she was younger. He had never hated the flash. He was a good man and a worthy rival. "Why then is she being treated so poorly."

"I wonder the same thing everyday." They all heard Jiraiya mutter under his breath. So then this was a regular occurrence? Onoki scoffs. To think that Konoha liked to act like they were the good guys. When they treat one of their hero's children like this? He may have hated Konoha but this was just sad.

"There are circumstances none of you are privy to." In other words it's a secret he's not going to share.

"So do you think she will be promoted?"

"Not off of that alone, she barely showed anything. The only thing I'm sure of is that the Yamanaka heiress won't be." Of course he didn't mention the fact that, that would would only happen if she recovers from the trauma. The other Kage nod, it would be foolish to promote either of them off of that alone.

* * *

Hinata had immediately hugged her girlfriend as soon as she walked up. She was glad she won, but that match and the aftermath had been hard to watch. Gently she strokes the red haired girls head. She could tell that the girl felt guilty for what happened. All Hinata could really do at the moment was embrace her in the warmth of the person who loves her the most in this world. The redhead deserves all the affection she can get and at this moment she needed it now more than ever. Looking at her she can see the first wound has already healed as if it never happened. Thank god for that healing factor, she could probably survive a Jyuken strike to the heart. Not that Hinata ever wanted to test such a theory. But the redhead was nothing if not resilient.

Fuu watched on, not saying anything, before receiving a look from Hinata. Wow this is a once in a lifetime chance. Fuu moves in and hugs the redhead from behind. Hinata wanted her being surrounded by people who care for her and Fuu could do just that. She doesn't expect this to become a regular thing.

"I had a bad feeling going in, in fact I still kind of have it. But I didn't do anything to stop it! I could have stopped her. Or known better than to blindly go around a corner!"

"Shh, it's okay Naru-chan. It's not your fault. Remember it's never your fault. No matter what anyone says you are innocent. You are pure. You are good. You are loved. You are not at fault." Hinata kisses the girl on the forehead. "You didn't mean for anything to happen, and it was Ino who used the Jutsu on you. There is no way you could have told her not to use it."

"It's true, it's not your fault Naruko-chan. So don't blame yourself for it." Hesitantly the girl nods. She doesn't move to separate from the hugs and neither of the other two do so. They'd be here for her no matter what.

"Hina-chan, Fuu. . . Thank you." It felt good to be enveloped by their warmth, something she had lacked for so long in her life.

"Anything for you Naru-chan."

"Yeah, just say the word and we'll do it for you." Naruko looked up and offered the two girls a weak smile. She was still feeling guilty but she would manage.

"Can we just sit?" She couldn't bare to watch the last match right now, or even really be in the view of the crowd. Which would surely contain the Yamanaka clan who were just forced to watch as their heiress had a breakdown from being in Naruko's mind.

The other two girls answer in the affirmative and sit in the back of the competitors box with Naruko between them. Well between is not quite accurate, they had pulled Naruko onto their collective lap, which was sort of between them. It was easier to comfort the girl this way.

They remained that way for what felt like hours and faintly heard the proctor call the last match in Samui's victory. He proceeded to tell the crowd and combatants that they would have a twenty minute break to clean the arena up then the second round would start. The girls just took the time to bask in each others presence. Finally Hinata breaks the comfortable silence and asks.

"Naruko you said you were getting a bad feeling, is it still happening?" The redhead nods.

"I'm not sure why, I thought at first it would be Sasuke's match, and then my own but neither of those seemed to make it stop, rather they both seemed to make it worst."

"I see." Hinata tosses her jacket onto Naruko's head, covering her from view. The redhead understood the message and activated Sage Mode. She's not particularly surprised to feel a huge gathering of powerful individuals up in the Kage box. She feels Konan there, not surprising but it had been hard to see the blue haired woman from the arena floor. Wait. Who is that behind her? He exudes far more power than everyone else present. There's something else about him, something familiar. Like she feels she knows him. It's kind of similar to how she felt about Uzushio. Not only that but she felt a stirring from within her when she felt something about his eyes. In a way it reminded her of looking at Kaguya. She'd have to look into this mystery man more.

She continues to survey the arena and finds another familiar presence. Orochimaru is here. It's odd it almost feels like there are multiple Orochimaru's scattered around the arena. She knows this feeling. These people have curse marks.

"Orochimaru is here."

Hinata stiffens upon hearing that. Him being here doesn't bode well for anyone. "Where?"

"It's kind of hard to tell, a lot of people bearing his mark are here." She could tell he's here. It's only with a sudden spike in negative intent is she able to find him. He's in the Kage box, standing just behind the Tsuchikage. She relays this information to the other two.

"Do you think he's planning something?"

"I think he's always planning something."

"Okay but do you think he's planning anything regarding the exams?"

"Hard to say, he was targeting us in the forest so he may be waiting to see how we do in the finals. I can't really tell."

They didn't have more time to ponder as the proctor calls all the contestants down to the floor of the arena. They all share a look and decide to discuss this later. They quickly arrive on the floor of the arena, noting how it looks good as new, except the still missing forest. "Things will be a little different for the second round of the exam. The second round will be a 3 vs 3 match with teams decided randomly. Because there are seven of you there will be one more bye given. It has been decided the bye will go to Fuu who will automatically advance to the next round. Fuu you may go up to the competitors box." The green haired girl nods and walks off. This is fine, it should still coincide with their plans. "Now then please come and draw lots." They do so quickly and he continues. "Everyone with a 1?" Naruko, Hinata, and Shikamaru hold up their papers. He turns to the others. "And you three have 2?" They nod and he continues. "Then the teams have been decided."

The genin move to stand with their team members. Shikamaru sighs about being forced to continue on because of a team. Well he could forfeit, but these two would be a pain in the ass if he did. If nothing else it should be easy.

The proctor didn't seem intent on giving them time to plan as he calls for them to begin.

Hinata wastes no time as she calls out "Naruko, I'll defend Shikamaru, Don't hold back on them. Shikamaru, use the time to come up with something." The boy nods and quickly moves into his thinking pose. He knew Hinata was strong and she wouldn't let him be taken down while coming up with a strategy.

Naruko didn't hesitate to rush in between the other three competitors. "I've been meaning to try this for a while now." They have no time to react as she holds her hands out in opposite directions. She starts to drain their chakra all at once. Interestingly it's not as fast when she does it like this as compared to targeting one person up close, but she is draining all of them, so it's good. She'll have to work on this more in the future.

Feeling the drain to their chakra they quickly move away from the redhead. "What the fuck was that?" Kurotsuchi says.

"Some kind of bloodline if I had to guess." Haku wasn't sure what to make of that but it's dangerous.

"I think we need to get rid of the other two first." Samui wasn't in the mood to let the Nara have time to plan while the redhead will just slowly drain them.

"That's fuckin stupid we should just kill the little red haired bitch." Kurotsuchi was not fond of the girl. Not in the slightest.

"Fine then you can deal with her, we'll take on the other two."

"Would it not be better for all of us to take on one target, three against one seems like a better deal than 1v1 and 2v2." Wait a second why was she not chasing after them? She was just sitting there now, staring almost blankly into space. Suddenly her eyes snap open and her hair stands on end. This seems bad. "We need to get rid of her now." His two impromptu teammates look at the redhead and notice the changes. Whatever technique she started doesn't seem good for them. They nod and rush towards her.

It was for not as the now Sage Mode empowered Naruko quickly disappears from their view and reappears next to Samui, lashing out with a devastating kick to the blondes temple. It sends her flying as she bounces and skids across the ground, only stopping as she slams into the wall of the arena. She wasn't unconscious and could still move, but damn did that attack hurt. She probably had a concussion from that alone. The cute ones are always the deadliest it seems.

The other two seeing the redhead stopped from kicking fire off with a glob of lava and needles of ice simultaneously. Naruko dodges easily and retreats upon hearing the call of, "We're ready Naruko."

"Alright what's the plan?"

"You can double layer Genjutsu correct?"

"Yeah."

"Do so on Kurotsuchi. We'll take care of the rest." Naruko nods and flies through the hand seals.

Kurotsuchi quickly falls into a daze as she sees a blonde bastard flashing through her village. He's repeatedly slaughtering her kinsmen one after another. He quickly arrives at her mother brutally delivering a blue orb of chakra into her back, shredding her torso to pieces. She cliches her teeth as she breaks the Genjutsu quickly finding herself standing among only her teammates. A few sakura petals float calmly through the arena.

Haku quickly realizes the Iwa kunoichi is still under the effects of a Genjutsu but as he rushes forward to break her out of it he's stopped by the sight of the Byakugan blazing angrily at him. He quickly flies through several hand signs and a dome of ice mirrors appear around her. He uses his superior speed now to try and hit her with several senbon.

She retaliates with a **Kaiten** that blocks them. "You'll run out of chakra doing that eventually."

"Perhaps, but how long can you keep this technique up?"

"We shall have to wait and see." He continues to send a hail of senbon at her and she continues to deflect with her clans technique.

Shikamaru had just locked Kurotsuchi in his **Kagemane no Jutsu** (Shadow Possession Technique) and Naruko had quickly followed up with knocking the Iwa Kunoichi out. Only to wince in pain as a sword arcing with Raiton chakra stabs through her side.

"Sorry babe, but you are the biggest threat." Naruko just smiles at her and says.

"You haven't met my girlfriend properly then." Naruko quickly performs the **Kawarimi no Jutsu** (Substitution Technique) with Hina-chan taking her place inside the dome. Notably bringing the Kumo kunoichi's sword with her. She quickly pulls it out of her as she starts to drain the Chakra from the dome around her.

"Don't think I didn't see what you did, I should kill you for that." Hinata says while lashing out with a Jyuken kick to the ribs, shattering one of them in the process.

Haku quickly retreats from his mirrors and cancels the technique, knowing it's just wasting chakra at this point. As it turns out it was for nothing as he finds himself immobilized by the Nara. With a sigh he says. "Alright I surrender." He knows the best he'll get is being knocked unconscious by the redhead.

Samui was struggling to stand, but seeing it now is a 3 vs 1 and she was injured unlike her opponents she raises her hands. "I admit defeat." The proctor seeing the match end quickly jumps in and says.

"Victors, Hyuuga Hinata, Nara Shikamaru, Uzumaki Naruko!" Unlike Naruko's previous match she and her team actually receive cheers for this one, likely because it was a team full of Konoha ninja. "A short five minute break will be given before we start the next round."

* * *

Hiruzen was pleased, three of his ninja had made it to the next round so the only foreign ninja remaining at this point was Fuu of Ame. Looking at his counterparts he can see the displeasure from the fact that so many of their genin lost. Onoki was probably mad that his granddaughter lost. He had basically just suffered two losses in a row with the other boys loss to Samui.

"Is Uzumaki-san going to be fit to continue? Being stabbed through the side will be quite debilitating." Mei had no real care for the girl, but seeing the girl die over such a small injury would be a shame. She looks delicious, she couldn't help but lick her lips. Behind her she misses Yagura roll his eyes. The Mizukage was very openly Bi back home, and had a weird thing for genin (most think it's not about age as it so much about the power dynamic). It concerned a lot of the senior ninja but she was a good kage, even if she was a bit bizarre, guess being a Kage at fourteen would do that to a person. He never understood why she would threaten people with violence when they mention marriage around her. He didn't really get it, she wasn't that old so it's not like she's past the age, nor were people talking about her getting married.

"She'll be fine, she's an Uzumaki." It's why his village had wanted to kidnap her mother to begin with. Uzumaki Longevity plus the healing factor was an amazing combination. "She'll be wounded but she won't die from something so small." Of course he had no idea about her other two healing factors at work that would ensure she wouldn't even be wounded by the next match. A wasn't particularly upset over Samui's loss. Sure he displayed it on the outside, but that was a well crafted act. Just like most of the Kage here.

"A-dono is right. Naruko-chan easily has the resilience of the best of us." He should know, the village had been testing the limits of that resilience for a long time. The other Kage take not of the 'chan' suffix, so is the girl close to the Hokage then?

Jiraiya has to resist snorting as he hears the Hokage say that. The man had fooled himself into thinking he at all cared for the girl.

* * *

"Are you okay Naru-chan?"

"Yeah I still have some Nature Chakra in my system so I should be good as new by the next match."

"Do you think they'll go back to 1 vs 1's when we're done resting?" They had four competitors left so it would make sense.

"Maybe." Naruko feels like something is constricting around her heart, like she would be hurt at any moment. "Hina-chan I might forfeit before the next match." She got the strangest feeling that whatever will happen will be bad.

"Are you still getting a bad feeling?" The redhead simply nods and Hinata strokes her back.

"I don't think you should, you're doing so well Naruko-chan. Plus I wanna see you go all out."

"It's not that exciting." Fuu would beg to differ, but they're not thinking of the same thing anymore.

"You'll be fine. Tell you what, if you still get the bad feeling during the match why don't you just surrender then? Might as well not give up yet." With some hesitation Naruko nods. She leans into her girlfriend and sighs. She's still worried, but maybe she's just being irrational.

* * *

With a groan he slowly opens his eyes. "I feel like I fell off the Hokage Monument." His head hurt like hell. Actually his everything hurt like hell.

"I'm surprised you're already conscious Sasuke-san. Fuu did quite the number on you." Oh. Thinking about it he might actually be less injured if he fell off the monument.

"Are the matches still going on?"

"Yes there are only four participants left. I believe two of them were your teammates." He tries to smile at that, but his bruised jaw begs to differ. He could have sworn it was broken. Medical Jutsu are really the best.

"Could I go watch their matches?"

"I don't think you should be standing, you're suffering from a concussion and both of your arms are still broken."

"Then can you get me a wheelchair so I can go watch while sitting down?" The medic looks like he wants to reject him, but another voice interrupts.

"Yosh! It is most youthful of you Sasuke-san. To want to see your teammates despite your injuries." Lee was exuberant as ever despite being in a hospital bed.

"Lee you're too loud, I can't deal with this right now."

"My apologies Neji-kun."

"Please, I need to see their matches, and to warn them."

"Warn them of what?"

"That our friend is a lot colder than she seems." The medic didn't really get it but he shrugs. "I'll sign a waiver if I have to or whatever such nonsense."

"Oh why didn't you just say that?" He didn't care enough to stop them, he just didn't want to get flak from the Hokage. He quickly pulls out a waiver saying he can't be held responsible for whatever may happen for the premature dismissal from the medical room.

Sasuke grinds his teeth. He had looked in Fuu's eyes during the match, they were cold. So cold. He can't tell if that's just how she is while fighting, or if she is truly that cold. They remind him of Itachi's during that night, before he had started crying. And that was another thing. For some reason towards the end his fears had started to consume him, despite the fact that he had no reason too. Fuu had done something and he has a bad feeling about it. As quickly as he can he hobbles towards the arena, he had to get their quickly, before either of his teammates fall into some kind of trap.

* * *

"This is the final round of the Chunin Exams! For the final match we will be having a free for all between the four remaining combatants!" He was going to continue but Shikamaru raises his hand.

"I forfeit, I'm out of chakra and I don't stand a chance against these three." He says gesturing to the three girls.

"Alright. Then Fuu, Hyuuga Hinata, and Uzumaki Naruko will participate in a free for all match against one another to decide who the final victor will be!" The three girls move so they're standing in a triangle equally far apart from one another.

Fuu and Hinata looked toward Naruko and saw her standing perfectly still. It would seem the redhead was planning an explosive start. Hinata and Naruko already understood that they would have to fight Fuu together. They individually would stand no chance. Hinata had too much riding on this to lose at this point.

"Begin!" The proctor jumped back and Naruko quickly snapped into Sage Mode lunging forward towards Fuu at an incredible speed. The redhead was faster than the green haired girl at the moment, and was keeping her on the ropes. Slowly she was herding her over to Hinata. The white eyed girl quickly lashed out once Fuu was close enough but the green haired girl just laughed joyful and jumped out of the way. Were it not for Naruko's quick reflexes Hinata would have hit her. She'd have to be more careful due to the difference in heights that attack could have been lethal if it hit Naruko.

The couple gives each other a nod and then resumes targeting Fuu. The girl was still far too dangerous for them alone, and they understood that there would be no hard feelings fighting each other after they beat Fuu. Fuu had taken the time to use **Soto Kokakku no Jutsu** (Exoskeleton Technique) and once more had the lines running up and down her skin. She and Naruko clashed this time and neither of them budged when Fuu's fist impacted Naruko's foot. It was really a testament to the potency of Sage Mode, that a chunin level kunoichi would be as powerful as a jonin level kunoichi when they're both using an enhancement technique, spoke wonders for it's power. Naruko quickly jumped back as a pressurized stream of water shot out of a seal Hinata was holding. It managed to slightly cut Fuu's armored skin open, but it was shallow.

This time Hinata rushed forward to engage Fuu in a Taijutsu bout while Naru-chan started weaving the hand signs for a Genjutsu.

* * *

Sasuke had just arrived into the arena proper, he quickly hobbled down the steps to get to the bottom railing. His Mangekyo was spinning as he watched Hinata engage Fuu. Suddenly he saw a detail his Sharingan hadn't picked up during the match. There is a very tiny amount of dust or something coming off of Fuu. "Hinata Don't Inhale!" He had thought it was just some orange glow but it was definitely some kind of dust.

She didn't seem to react to his call and he cursed it was too loud for her to hear him properly.

* * *

She had to win this, the elders would stop at nothing to end her relationship with Naruko otherwise. She had to much riding on this. With each attack she sent towards Fuu she got more ferocious. She didn't care if she killed the green haired girl, who oddly is only defending right now, she just had to win so she could stay with the love of her life.

Naruko had finished weaving the hand signs for her Genjutsu. Fuu should think she's bound to a tree now. It doesn't seem to take as Hinata doesn't capitalize and just strikes her quickly breaking the Genjutsu. Why is Hina-chan acting so weird? Naruko's stomach was starting to turn as her feeling was getting worse by the second.

Suddenly Fuu shakes herself wildly, and a large puff of smoke emits from her. It was an odd orange.

"Hinata No!" Was that Sasuke, was he alright? Naruko look to the direction of the voice and sees indeed he's over there shouting something to Hina-chan. She feels a snap of wind and kicks out on instance as she sends Fuu careening to the side from the force of her kick. Oddly she seems to have been knocked out by that and Naruko realizes she had stopped her Jutsu for some reason. Maybe it was super chakra intensive.

"Fuu is no longer able to continue!"

Naruko turned to look at Hina-chan only for her eyes to widen.

* * *

Hinata had to stay with Naru-chan. It was the thing she lived for. Her life held no purpose without the redhead in it, so she had to protect her. She whips around as she sees Fuu kick Naruko to the side violently. The proctor speaks saying

"Fdsfko Is no longer able to continue!" Why didn't he say Naru-chan's name? Was he another hater? Whatever it's unimportant now. She would just have to carry on and beat Fuu on her own. She charges forward and lashes out with a Jyuken strike aimed at the girls heart. Did she get shorter? Weird. Fuu turns towards her in shock and her green hair seemed to flicker red for the briefest moments.

"I won't let you take Naru-chan away from me!"

"Hinata!" Was that Sasuke. "Stop!" She feels her hand thump against the other girls chest and she stumbles back in shock. She presses the advantage and lashes out with another strike this time to the girls lungs, she would kill her if she has to. She sees a quick pulse of chakra from Naru-chan and suddenly the two have switched places. Naru-chan was looking at her in shock. She suddenly coughs up blood and falls forward onto her knees. No. This can't be happening. She had been attacking Fuu! She had green hair! Naru-chan starts to fall face first into the ground.

Hinata is quick to rush forward and catch the girl. "I. . . I wanted to spend my life with you." She was interrupted by a fit of coughs as her heart struggled to continue beating, each beat forcing more blood into her mouth and lungs.. Hinata could feel the redheads heart slowing down as it beats are wild and uncontrolled. "I love you." More coughs followed. "I'm sorry, it looks lik-" She was interuppted again as she coughed more and more blood onto the white eyed girl. "Like we won't be getting m-married. I was looking f-forward. To being your w-wife." With one final cough the light fades from her eyes and she slumps over. No! This couldn't be happening! No! How did it end up like this?

"No! Naru-chan! No!"

No!

Her heart had stopped beating.

"Naru-chan you can't!"

No! It can't be true!

Uzumaki Naruko was dead.

"Naru-chan don't you dare die on me!"

And it was all her fault!

* * *

A/N Well I'm back with two chapters in one week so that's pretty exciting. This was quite the chapter, it was almost entirely fighting. It was hard to write towards the end. Not because I had writers block, but because it was actually hard to do that to the characters. I'll be excited to see your reactions to this chapter. And make no mistake, the fic isn't done by a long shot, but with this chapter I'm calling this the end of the Chunin Exam arc and closing the poll for what filler arcs I should do.

I'll be doing the top six picks. So in no particular order that will be the first Naruto movie, the first Shippuden movie, the Kaima Capture mission, Blood prison, Bonds, and the Yakumo Kurama arc. I may or may not cut bonds from this list as I hadn't thought about how the zero tails wouldn't really make sense in my AU when I added it. But we'll see, if I can't get it to work then I'll cut it, but I'll certainly try.

Anyways until next time.

CM 12/19/2018


	17. Uzumaki Naruko

Her vision had faded to black. The last thing she remembered was. . . Nothing. She remembered nothing. Where was she now? She couldn't tell. It was just an empty white space. No. That's not entirely true, there was a single set of swings here. They seemed to sway as if a breeze pushed them but the air was still. Wait no. There is no air here. The only thing here seems to be some source of light she couldn't pin point and the swings.

She decided to walk over to the swings. If there was nothing else here then she might as well sit on the swings. As she approached she realized there was a woman sitting on the swings. The woman had long red hair, and deep purple eyes. Protruding from her forehead were to small horns, not unlike. . . Unlike what? Or is it who? She couldn't remember. The woman had an ethereal beauty to her, how had she not noticed this woman? She must be out of sorts. The woman looked up at her and spoke.

"Hello dear."

"Hello."

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you Na-" Her voice cut out, the girl had no idea what she was going to say.

"Am I supposed to know you?"

"I've been with you your whole life."

"Then how is this our first meeting."

"For the first time in your life we are separate."

"So then are you me?"

"I suppose you could say that, I have been many people, as have my brothers. You were, are, my latest iteration."

"So then how am I distinct now?"

"You were the first to be killed by As-" She had cut out again, so the girl didn't know who or what killed her.

"So is this the afterlife?"

"No, not quite. You still have a chance to live."

"Should I even want to live?" Being dead didn't seem that bad.

"That's up to you. But if you want to live all you have to do is remember who you are before Ka-" Another name was cut out. "escapes completely."

"How do I remember?"

"I can't answer that for you, I suppose try to think about what drives you."

"How long do I have?"

"About ten minutes, but time doesn't flow normally here, counting to 600 will not take ten minutes, it could be an hour it could be one real minute. So just think, if you remember then I'll help you regain control."

"Thanks miss. . . I never got your name." The woman spoke but the girl couldn't understand it. Seeing she wasn't going to understand the girl sat on the swing and tried to remember. What drives her?

The color lavender seemed to flash in her mind, but she couldn't think of why.

* * *

"Naru-chan is dead and I killed her." That was the only thought racing through Hyuuga Hinata's mind. Over and over the message seemed to repeat in her mind. She had betrayed the love of her life and in her final moments the girl was not angry at her. Hinata was barely aware of the proctor calling her the winner by death. What she was intensely aware of is the cheering that seemed to erupt from the crowd.

They were cheering? Cheering for the fact that she killed Naru-chan? How dare they! After everything they had done to the girl! They dared to cheer for her death! She'd kill them! She'd show them what it's like for someone to cheer for their loved ones dying. She looked up fiercely at the crowd, tears streaming down her face.

"Shut up! All of you shut the fuck up!" This seemed to start the crowd into silence. She absently noticed the elders and her father looking on upset, but she couldn't care less at the moment. "You. . . You pieces of trash are cheering for her death! You made her life hell and then you dare cheer for her death!?" The Hokage was standing to try and calm her down.

"Hyuuga-san! This is not the kind of-" She interrupted him. He would never be her leader, not when he condones a village like this.

"Shut the fuck up you bastard, you are the worst of them all. Her parents trusted you to protect her dammit! And you sacrificed her! I've had enough of you and this god forsaken village hurting her, even in death!" She couldn't take it, the stares of hate all beamed at the love of her life, the derision it was maddening. They call themselves the great tree she would show them, what she thinks of this tree. She didn't hesitate to remove her headband and slash right through it.

"Hinata." That was Sasuke's voice, he was giving her a meaningful look, he would stick by her. To prove it he slashed through his headband too. He may want to restore honor to his clan, but Konoha had proven there was no honor to be had here.

"Sasuke, we'll probably die, but lets give them hell shall we?" He smirked and nodded.

"Try not to hold me back." Hinata smiled, she was still so angry, but she couldn't help the malicious smile that came to her face. A group of chunin had approached to apprehend the two defectors.

"I'm already ahead." She made a single handsign and spikes of wood shot out of the ground impaling the chunin. They died instantly.

Following that three things happened all at once. Feathers fell from the sky, putting large amounts of people to sleep. The kage box exploded. And finally, perhaps the most noticeable in the chaos, a feeling of dread erupted from Naruko the girls skin seemed to peel as a deep red chakra, almost like blood, was revealed be underneath. Six tails erupted from her back and she gave a deafening roar that shook the stadium.

* * *

"Shut up! All of you shut the fuck up! You. . . You pieces of trash are cheering for her death! You made her life hell and then you dare cheer for her death!?" Konan gave a meaningful look to the Kazekage, Orochimaru in disguise, and Nagato. It would seem it's starting. The plan was simple, destroy the leaf and have Naruko killed by someone she trusts, then when the time comes Nagato would revive her, and they would have her loyalty and the hotbed of corruption, that is the leaf, would be destroyed.

"Hyuuga-san! This is not the kind of-" He was interrupted by the girl, shouting at him.

"Shut the fuck up you bastard, you are the worst of them all. Her parents trusted you to protect her dammit! And you sacrificed her! I've had enough of you and this god forsaken village hurting her, even in death!" Much to likely everyone surprise the girl slashed her headband hand declared herself a missing nin. They had known she wasn't the most stable person, but to think that she would betray the village in front of every ninja the village had, was insanity at best.

The girl and her teammate, Itachi's brother, exchanged a few words, as he too betrayed the village, and then the girl used the kekkei genkai given by Orochimaru. She nodded at the disguised snake and the Kage box exploded.

"Kazekage-dono what's the meaning of this?" It was Onoki who asked, he had moved to one side of the remains of the box with the other two visiting kage.

"Konoha falls today, don't suppose you'd like to join us? Or you can leave now, We won't hold it against you. Our troops are only under orders to fight Konoha. And any who aids the leaf" Only Suna had brought an army, the other three villages hadn't been allowed to bring more than 100 nin, due to them not being allied. After brief deliberation and the feeling of dread coming from the center of the stadium the other Kage decided.

Mei was the first to decide. "We want no part in this." The mist had no interest in getting involved with this soon to be war, and she had a lot of genin here, as she wanted them to see the chunin exams that were going to be historic. "Kiri! We are leaving!"

The other two Kage weren't given time to declare their intent as the Kazekage and the Hokage were locked in barrier together.

"Onoki, what do you think?"

"This seems like a good time to wipe out the leaf for good."

"But."

"But we don't know what the Ame is doing, and the chaos below could likely get my own troops killed." He may hate the leaf, but he couldn't have been a kage this long with out some rational thought.

"Yes those three children seem to be wrecking more havoc than the two armies."

Down below the arena was being split in three battles, those by the Hyuuga with Mokuton. Those by the last Uchiha, and finally by the Uzumaki who had some kind of wretched ability he had never seen before.

"Iwa! We are leaving, if you choose to stay you will be declared missing in action!" He would allow his troops to decide weather to take revenge without losing their honor as nin of Iwa. But they would also never be allowed back in the village.

A, seeing the wisdom in this decides to mimic the order with his own troops. Though much to his dismay it would seem a few of his genin decide to stay, notably Samui, though he couldn't tell why. Well he wouldn't fault them for their choices. He turned to the representatives from Ame.

"And what will you do?"

"We brought no troops, so we shall stay and watch the chaos." Konan had not removed her eyes from Naruko, who had now grown a seventh tail. She didn't even bat an eye as Fuu landed next to her.

"Is this what you wanted?"

"Yes. You've done well."

"Do you think she'll ever forgive me?"

"You truly are infatuated with Naruko aren't you?"

"Yes."

"You realize for our goals to happen there are good odds she dies regardless?"

"I know."

"Will your loyalty waiver?"

"No."

"How can you be sure?"

"I can't."

"You know what will happen if you betray us." It wasn't a question.

"I won't."

"Good." They knew Nagato was in charge, but he was not the one in charge public-ally, so in a situation like this, Konan was the one she reports to.

* * *

"Hinata I order you to back down!" It was an elder of her clan. But she couldn't care less.

"I'm done taking orders from the clan, and especially from you elders." He didn't get a chance to say more as she impaled him with a spike of wood. She had already planned on finding a good time to murder the elders, well this was the best time given the circumstances. She knew they would always be in her way, so they had to be removed.

Of course it mattered little now that Naru-chan was dead and the demon was escaping. But perhaps this way she could do a favor for her mother and father and sister. Assuming they didn't get in her way. Which they didn't seem to be doing, perhaps because they knew how she was feeling at this moment. She heard a loud crash and felt the presence before she saw it, the demon was here. It had killed someone aiming to kill her. Had Naru-chan protected her even now.

"Naru-chan? Are you still in there?" A roar was all she was met with, and the creature grew it's eighth tail. "Guess not." It jumped at her and she erected a barrier of wood that was almost immediately destroyed. But it had stalled long enough for her to move away. "Naru-chan if you're in there I would really appreciate it if you could stop!"

* * *

"... I would really appreciate it if you could stop." The girl looked up.

"Did you say that?" It hadn't sounded like the woman, it had sounded familiar, but she couldn't pinpoint why.

"No, that is someone you love, trying to reach you from the outside."

"I have someone I love?"

"Yes, another first between us."

"Between you and me?"

"No between myself and him, though he is a she this time around. Perhaps that is why In-" She could never seem to hear these names, "got along with the two of us this incarnation. Something about your incarnation is different and it's changed the three of us."

"I don't really understand but okay." She had to try and think of what matters to her, what drives her. It has to do with lavender. The voice seemed to match the color, so it had something to do with that girl. What was her name Homi-chan? No that's not it. Hana-chan? Closer but still wrong. Hanu-chan? Even further. Ah yes, it was Hina-chan wasn't it. This Hina-chan is important to her. But why? Right the woman had said it earlier, she love her. But she didn't know why, and she didn't know who she even was, just that she loved this girl named Hina-chan and the girl was associated with Lavender.

"It looks like you figured something out."

"I'm in love with Hina-chan." The woman nodded.

"Very good, now then you're in love with her, but who are you? Who is to be in love with her?"

"How much time do I have left?"

"Two minutes."

"I am. . ."

* * *

"Naru-chan! Go fight someone else!" Naru-chan was slaughtering everyone who got between her and Hinata and it was getting annoying. The redhead that she loved so much had grown the ninth tail and had started to take the shape of the demon. Hinata got the strangest sense that if she grew the tenth tail then she would really truly die. "Come on Naru-chan I'm Hinata! Don't you remember me! I love you! You were going to be my wife! You were the light of my life. You still are!" The tenth tail was starting to grow.

* * *

"You have less than thirty seconds."

"I am. . . I am. . . I-I don't know who I am."

"Time is up." The world in white darkened instantly and the girl was left alone in the dark. The woman was gone, the swing was gone. And Naruko was all alone. Wait she remembers now!

"Miss I remember now. I'm Uzumaki Naruko! Please I remember now! You have to send me back." But there was nothing. She was dead and had missed her chance to live again. A light appeared in the darkness. Oh hell no. She is not going anywhere towards that. She has to live and see Hina-chan again!

She went the opposite direction, but no matter how far she moved away it was always just as close behind her. "I'm not dying that easily! I'll spend an eternity here if it means seeing Hina-chan again!"

"You will never wake up again Kagura. This is good bye before I escape."

"Kaguya?" She turned and saw only that single horrible eye. It had Kaguya's voice but it wasn't her. "You're the Juubi."

"We finally meet, right before I leave you to the Shinigami, Kagura's latest incarnation." All she could see was the eye curve upwards with delight, it's deep hatred for her family and humanity shining through. "It's good to finally be rid of this cursed family. When I escape Asura and Indra will be the first to die. Then truly no one will be able to stand against me."

"Did they reincarnate too?"

"They are your lover and best friend. Now I'll be on my way." The eye started to move away and she could feel the cold creeping in stronger now.

"Wait!" She couldn't let it go. If it truly left then Hina-chan and Sasuke would be killed! She tried to run after it but it was leaving this place faster than she could move. "Dammit!" It was gone escaping from the seal. Wait. . . She was in the seal this entire time, then maybe if she can close it somehow she can at least kill that thing with her! But how?

Molding chakra doesn't seem to work here. Could Fuinjutsu work? Maybe. It suddenly got a lot colder and a being stood before her. But before it could do anything it seemed to reach out and take a hold of two arms. Where did these arms come from? She couldn't answer that question. Things only got weirder, The Hokage got pulled in too. "What are you doing here?"

The aged Kage seemed startled by that. He turned and saw his greatest sacrifice and failure staring at him. If only he had done better when he sacrificed her, perhaps if he had inspired more loyalty some how. Well it matters little now. "How did you get inside the Shinigami's stomach Naruko?"

"I don't think we're in it." She says, pointing to the creature looking down at them. "How did you get here?"

"I used the **Shiki Fuin**.(Dead Demon Consuming Seal)" The Shinigami finally seemed to act again and grabbed a hold of Hiruzen.

"Show me the hand signs and the sealing formula if you can."

"Why do you need to know?"

"If I'm going to be here for eternity, caught in the boundary between reincarnation and the afterlife then I might as well have something to do." She didn't know if that's what this place truly is, but it seemed to exist in the same space as her seal. Which was made using the **Shiki Fuin**. Her gut told her that's the case and for some reason she feels like the Shinigami is trying to show that she's correct.

"Alright then." And so he with the limited time he had drew out the seal and said the hand signs while doing so, not having time to perform both for her. "I never hated you by the way."

"I know, you just loved the village more than anything."

"I wish things didn't have to end the way they did."

"Things always could have ended differently, you just didn't want to risk trying the difficult path."

He gave a laugh. "Perhaps we've all underestimated you Naruko." And just like that the Shinigami swallowed him and he was gone.

She looked up at the god. "Sorry but I'm going to have to cheat you this time." The redhead grabbed the arms, having been able to sense the chakra sill present in them, and set to work using them while deconstructing the seal. The matrix was complex but she understood it, she could take it apart and reconstruct it. She was sure of it. And most importantly she could use it to reroute the Juubi back into her.

* * *

The beast was standing at it's full might and all hope seemed lost. Konoha had been reduced to a burning pile of rubble now. No one knew where Jiraiya was and no other seal master was competent enough to seal this monstrosity.

She should have never put her students in these god forsaken exams. Two of them had betrayed the village and were who knows where, and one of them was dead and turned into the demon. Kurenai couldn't help but feel like the worst had truly happened. If only there was some way to turn back time.

Being a Genjutsu mistress had it's perks, the most prominent one being of course high level use of Genjutsu. The second being it made annoying people less likely to approach (it tends to be scary approaching a woman who can make them think they are eating their own eyes, again. And again. And again). But there was another advantage, it gave her a good eye for detail. So when she saw the faintest flash of purple in it's horrid red eyes, she had immediately connected it with her supposedly dead student. Perhaps a bit to great a jump, but she had to hold out hope somehow. She had to find Jiraiya.

* * *

Sasuke had to admit, the day could have been better. His teammate could have not died. The crowd could have not cheered for her death. A fifty story monster could have not been unleashed on the world. He could also not have been chased by said monster with Hinata beside him while the village at large attacks the two kids and the monster. But somehow that is how his day ended up. "Why is it so intent on killing us?!"

"Maybe because we were close to Naruko? And it somehow wants revenge or something?"

"Is this you trying to convince me that revenge sucks? Cause this sucks."

Despite the situation Hinata found herself laughing. "I think we've already made that point. Also I think this is good bye."

"Why do you say that?" He turned to look at what she was seeing with her Byakugan and saw the gathering orb of energy in front of it's mouth. "Shit."

"Our only hope is Naruko some how comes back from the dead."

"So there is no hope then?"

"Correct." Hinata decided to stop running there and turn to face the music. "If we're gonna die then I'm not gonna die with my back to the killer."

"What are you, a samurai?" Sasuke skid to a stop and walked up to her.

"Aren't you the one who cares about honor?"

"I guess so, but I think that's changed a bit in the past few months. But yeah, I do still want honor for my family."

"God you are so melodramatic."

"I'm surprised you've calmed down enough to banter, given Naruko only died like twelve minutes ago."

"I've calmed down because I know I'll be with her soon enough."

"Heh, I guess that's fair." The two quieted at that, the beast was almost done making the ball of energy now, it would destroy the village and everything around the village for likely hundreds of miles. They never had any hope of escaping to begin with. "It's been a pleasure, Hinata."

"You made a good third, Sasuke. I couldn't have asked for a better friend."

* * *

"Nagato shouldn't we go soon?" There was no one left to over hear them, so she had no qualms deferring to Nagato.

"Yes you're right Konan, this is only the start of the world learning pain."

"You know I'm glad you two are alive. Is Yahiko alive too."

"No he really did die sensei."

"A shame then. So what are you two planning."

"World peace."

"You've developed a weird definition of peace."

"There will be no more fighting or bloodshed, the world has already seen the power we have now at our disposal."

"So you planned for Naruko to die then?"

"Yes, we also had her parents killed that night you know. So we could ensure a vessel we could manipulate would exist."

"Gonna be hard to manipulate a dead girl."

"Perhaps for a mortal. But sensei. I am god."

Jiraiya couldn't help but snort. "Nagato if you're god then I'm gay."

"Sensei is now the time to be coming out?"

"Why do I even bother with you. You understand it, don't you Konan?"

"That you are a pervert and insinuating that you are gay is very far from the truth, yes I do understand sensei."

"Explaining the humor kills it you know."

"I'm aware."

"I love you both like you're my own kids but god do I hate you two. . . Would it have been so hard to send me a letter saying you're alive?"

"It would have hindered out goals if anyone, including yourself found out."

"I see. Well I'm glad you're alive. But I have a village to save, and a beast to contain."

"It won't work."

"Why not?"

"It's not fully unleashed yet, Naruko is still hanging on by a thread. She has to be completely dead for you to seal it again, or the sealing won't work. And of course I can't let you seal it again."

"Then I guess we fight huh?"

"There is no need. Naruko will manage to contain it."

"Why do you choose to believe in a dead girl you've never met?"

"Because she is an Uzumaki, and more than anything we are tenacious."

"Jiraiya-sama!" The man in question lifted a curious brow as Kurenai arrived.

"What's up?"

She looked at him strangely, Konoha was in ruins and he was just standing here. And that's all he had to say? "I think Naruko is trying to fight back. But she needs help. Do you have any ability to seal it again? Or enhance the current seal?"

He turned to Nagato and Konan, "You don't care that I'm going to put a stop to this?"

"No whether we stop it and resurrect Naruko or you do it doesn't matter." Konoha was destroyed so she would have to go somewhere, and Ame would greet her with open arms.

Jiraiya turned back towards Kurenai. "Alright let's go, we just need to weaken it for a single moment."

* * *

"Fuck this."

"I was thinking the same thing."

"I'm not dying like this. We may be genin Sasuke but if we're going to die then let's die fighting this thing."

"I couldn't have said it better myself."

They didn't have much time but they could try and do something. They were running out of chakra though so this really would be the last attempt. Large spikes of would shot from the ground and into the beast, it cried out in pain but didn't stop. Sasuke followed up with burning it's eye in black flames. It cried out again and lost some control of the energy. It exploded in it's face but the beast seemed relatively unharmed. Most of the ball was still intact and charging but they had bought a few seconds.

They watched as it prepared to go again but before it could a seal spread out from underneath it. They swore they could hear Jiraiya, but they couldn't make out what he was saying.

* * *

She got it! She had deconstructed the seal like she intended to. Now to just use the arms chakra and get out!

Nothing happened. It had taken to long and the chakra had faded. She let out a sigh of frustration and tossed the arms aside. The Shinigami quickly ate them. Dammit if she just had chakra she could do it. She had failed.

She would never see Hina-chan again.

She would never see Sasuke again.

She would never see Kurenai-sensei.

Or Fuu.

Or Jiraiya.

Or Hitomi and Hiashi.

Or Hanabi.

Or the Ichiraku's.

Huh. When did she get so many people she cared for? For so long it was just her and Hina-chan. But slowly she had met so many people she cared for. She had so many people she was fighting for now, but she had only wanted to fight for Hina-chan. To her surprise that actual made her feel warm on the inside. She was actually loved by so many people wasn't she? And she would never see any of them again at this rate. She couldn't stand for that.

She two hands on her shoulder. She behind her and saw a blonde man and the woman from earlier. No she looks similar, but this woman is different. If anything she looks more like what Naruko imagines her older self would look like.

"We never got to have a proper meeting and now the seal containing us is failing, so we thought you'd like to have our chakra before we go."

"You're. . . Tou-chan and Kaa-chan?"

The two nod. "We're so proud of you, Naruko-chan. You're father and I have watched over you for so long, you've grown into a fine young woman."

"Like you're mother said, we couldn't be more proud. We're running out of time, but know that wherever you are, we'll always love you."

The redhead girl couldn't help but leap into her parents arms. It felt so good to see them, to hear from their own mouths that they love her. "I'll miss you two. I'll see you around."

"Hopefully not to soon." The girl nods and the two disappear, well one of them gets consumed by the Shinigami, but those are minor details.

Naruko knew she was lacking on time and immediately set to work performing the hand signs. She would likely never be able to perform this again. Because it requires she's in the plane of existence to start with, but that mattered little.

" **Akuma no Seikatsu Kessoku Fuin** (Demon Life Binding Seal)!" The plain around her was enveloped in white and she found herself standing back at the swing set again.

"It seems you figured something out. Now tell me who are you?"

"I am Uzumaki Naruko! And I'm driven by my loved ones. Especially Hina-chan."

The woman smiles. "Good, I'll admit you surprised me with this, but I'm impressed none the less. So just this once, I'll help you return." The woman performed a strange Jutsu using hand signs Naruko had never seen before and just like that Kaguya was there.

"So you managed to swap me and it huh Kagura?" The white haired woman had immediately gone to Naruko. The other redhead had disappeared. All around them the temple started to be built once more.

"I didn't do anything."

"Hmm, you still don't seem to get it, oh well. You'll understand properly. One day."

Naruko was about to say something but the world flashed and just like that she found herself laying in a pile of rubble with Jiraiya crying tears of joy.

"Dying is weird. But somehow coming back is even weirder."

"You have no idea how worried I was."

"What have I missed?"

"So much."

* * *

A/N So uh, how have you all been? Yeah sorry about the extreme delay (only to end up giving a short chapter too.) but I just could not bring myself to write for so long and then I was busy by the time I wanted to start again that I just never had a good chance. So for anyone still reading this, sorry about the delay. It was undeserved.

On to other news. This fic is over. Kinda. I really have lost a lot of the inspiration to write for it. So I am going to complete this story here. That being said I'm not done with this series and will at some point pick it up with a new fic that will continue off right after this. Whenever that may be I will say I'm not going to post in chapters for it until I have at least the half the story written so I can give you all a more regular update schedule.

Also I'm currently in the drafting phase for a RWBY fanfic if any of you are interested in me enough as an author to go check it out. (It should hopefully be up sometime in the next two weeks. Hopefully, depends on how classes are going too). I had mentioned in my first A/N that I had one a while back, well this is like the spiritual successor to that idea. I think with it I want to update about every two weeks with longer updates. (So between 10-15k works a chapter)

To everyone one who has read this story Thank you. Especially to all of you who have followed, favorited, and reviewed. It always makes me so excited to see how many people have been following this story, favoriting, or reviewing. I read each and every review and look to see who these new followers are and seriously it means the world to me that people care (or are bored) enough to say tell me what they think about my fic. I hope to see you all in the next one.

Till next time.

CM 2/9/2019


	18. AN

Hey all, this is just an A/N. So I just wanted to give you a brief description of my plan going forward with this story. I just uploaded the first chapter of a rewrite a few minutes ago. If any of you are interested it should be up on my profile, under the title Naruko: The Inheritor of Ten. For those of you who are waiting on a sequel well it won't be coming until I finish the rewrite. But I do have one planned. In fact I'm actually planning on making it a trilogy, so just to give a rough idea the sequel will take place over the course of the two year time skip and will probably be a bit shorter than the original in length. But that's still far away.

Anyways I wanted to thank you for all your support over the 11 months that this has been out. You guys are really what made this story happen and have been nothing but kind to me. So thank you so much for all that. If you don't wanna read the rewrite no problem, I'll update this story again with another authors note when the sequel is out. Either way I hope to see you in the next one.

CM 09/26/2019


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